Anything and Everything Awesome
by SarahTonin
Summary: Human AU Jules is pretty much your average college girl. And by average, I really mean completely and totally, undeniably awesome. Sure, most people don't see that, especially not her roommate, but they will one day. She'll just spread her awesomeness until it's a well known fact. Gender bent. Changed some names. PruCan Fem!Prussia x Canada
1. Chapter 1

"God Garrett, could you be any slower?" I had already made it up the three flights of stairs and was waiting for him in the hallway.

"Ugh, why is all your useless shit so heavy, Jules?" he complained. I finally saw his face from the door propped open from the stairwell.

"Stop being such a pussy. I let you carry the lightest box." I started heading further down the hallway. I think my dorm room was this way. "And it's not just useless shit. It's awesome useless shit."

"Why do I have to help you move in anyway? Shouldn't your brother be doing this?" He shifted the weight of the box. He winced as his fingers started cramping.

"Baby bro's back at home. His first football game of the season is today, and neither of my parents wanted to miss it," I explained.

It was no surprise that my brother was my parents' favorite. He was pretty much the perfect son, and I was...well I was too awesome to be perfect. I'm so awesome I could handle this alone, without them. I'd guilt trip them into getting awesome stuff for me when they came to visit.

The door to my room was open, thank God. I wouldn't have to dig through my pocket to fish out the key my resident assistant gave me.

My roommate had already moved in. She was smoothing out the covers on her bed. Everything was already neat and organized and put into place.

Her long dark brown hair fell into her face as she turned towards me. She smoothed the stray strands behind her ear.

"You must be Julia," she said.

I say down my box in the middle of the floor. My arms had just started to burn. "Jules. You must be Katerina. Can I call you Rina?" I said with a bright smile. I could already tell we were going to be a bit different. Might as well make the most awesome impression possible.

She wasn't smiling. "Just Katerina, please."

Oh great, she was one of those people.

"Jules, I..." Garrett froze at the doorway. His mouth was dropped open. What was his problem?

Katerina's eyes went wide as well. "I thought there weren't any boys living in these dorms," she said a bit frazzled. She tried to move my box to the side, but it wouldn't budge.

I rolled my eyes. That rule was a bit inconvenient. I had to go to the one building that wasn't mixed. "Don't get your panties in a bunch. It's just Garrett. He's really not much of a boy, and he's just here to help me move in."

"Sorry about Jules. She can be a bit rude." He gave me a look, and I stuck my tongue out at him. He set his stuff on top of mine and pushed both of the boxes over to my side of the room. He held out his hand out to my roommate. "I'm Garrett Hedervary. I'm just Jules' friend. We're just friends." What did he think he was doing? He couldn't possibly be...

"My name is Katerina Edelstein. I'm Julia's new roommate."

"You can call me Jules." I repeated. They weren't listening. She put her hand in his. He held it for a moment before lifting it up to his lips for a light kiss.

This could NOT be happening! She was even blushing like some Disney princess. Garrett was grinning like an idiot while he held her hand.

"Garrett, could you help me get the rest?" No response. He was looking into her eyes like some lost puppy. "Now!"

He finally looked at me. "Right, I'll be...we'll be right back," he said.

Katerina nodded. She hadn't said a word. I had to drag him away. I closed the door behind me.

"What the hell was that?" I punched Garrett in the stomach.

"Ow! What is your deal, Jules?"

"What's my deal? What's YOUR deal?! You're gay!"

"My deal...WHAT?! I'm not gay!"

"Yes. You are. You don't have to deny it. I'm your best friend. I've known you've been gay forever. Probably since that time we were kids when you were playing with the Barbie dolls my mom gave me. You know, the ones I was going to light up with fireworks."

"I. Am. Not. Gay. God, Jules! Just because I never hit on you, you automatically assume I'm gay?"

"You've never hit on any girl! Who wouldn't think you're gay? And then you just suddenly start pulling the moves on my roommate?"

"She's just so...perfect! I've never met a girl like her! She's so pretty and proper and..."

"And what, a neat freak? You don't know a thing about her! I can't believe she fell for those cheesy moves!"

"They weren't cheesy. They're classic." He started smiling like an idiot again. "You really think she likes me?"

"Keep it in your pants, lover boy." I slapped him in the arm. "And help me get the rest of my stuff.

* * *

We were back in my hallway with the rest of my stuff. And by rest of my stuff, I mean, I was carrying the last three heavy boxes and Garrett had diddly squat. He was being an annoying butt munch as he slowed his pace.

"Oh God!" he muttered. "What if I blow it?"

"Open the door already, princess!"

"What should I say?"

"Don't say anything! Propose! Ask her on a date for a cup of coffee? Whatever you do, open that door for me before I drop these on your foot!"

Garrett finally hauled his ass and got the door open to my room. I scrambled over to my bed and placed the boxes on the bare mattress.

I huffed out in disbelief. My friend, my BEST friend, was a damn skirt chaser! And her skirt wasn't even short. It ruffled down to her mid calf like an old Amish lady.

"I think you're done here, Garrett. You can go. You should go," I said.

Katerina glared at me. Whoa, there, honey! Calm yourself! If they stayed there ogling at each other, I think I would puke.

"Hey, Katerina!" Her attention was pulled back to Garrett. His green eyes were sparkling. Did he just flip his hair? Oh God no...

"I know this might be a bit sudden, but do you want to grab some coffee?"

"Okay." A small smile played on her face.

Oh, just kill me now. This was almost straight out of a trashy romance novel. There was no way this crap happened in real life.

Garrett did this ridiculous half smile. If he could see his face, he'd be wanting to crack up as much as me. We used to make fun of suckers like him.

"I'll just freshen up a little bit first. I'll meet you downstairs," she said.

"Alright. I'll be waiting. See you later, Jules!" Garrett said as he left. He gave an extra special smile to Katerina.

Katerina turned toward me once Garrett left. No wait, she turned towards the mirror. She smoothed down her already silky straight hair.

"Pretty hot stuff, huh?" I said. She didn't look amused by my teasing. Who put the stick up her ass? I went back to my boxes. Just which box had I packed it in?

"I'm not easy, you know," she said. "I'm not like that."

"Oh really?" I said sarcastically. Could we just drop this? I tore at the tape sealing one of the boxes. "Never would have guessed."

"Garrett seems like a gentleman, and I'm willing to take the chance this once."

Once? I guess I could believe this was her first. A pretty face could only get you so far.

"I really don't want to make things awkward for us on the first day, so if you..."

"Nah, it's fine," I said. "You guys go have fun. I've got to unpack anyway." Where could it be? I grabbed the next box and started to search through the contents.

"Good. I'll see you later then."

"It'd be pretty hard not to, considering we're living together," I said.

"I'd rather you not put it that way," she said. "It has multiple implications."

Oh. My. God. What was her problem?! "Fine. We're rooming together. Happy?"

"Yes. Bye, Julia." She closed the door behind her as she left our dorm room.

Oh God, this was going to be a long year. What in the world did Garrett see in her? Oh there it is! My laptop!

I brought my prized possession to the surface and removed its new case. I kissed its smooth exterior.

"I missed you, baby," I whispered to it fondly. My life was practically tethered to this thing. I hardly went anywhere without it.

The box with my laptop also held my diary. Well, diaries. I'd accumulated quite a few over the years. I grabbed one and flipped to one of the old entries. I laughed. This one was from elementary school. I could tell from my sloppy scrawled handwriting and the dirt smeared into the pages. I had skinned my knee from beating the boys in the races. It was a pretty awesome day much like all the others. And just like all the others, I had practiced signing my name. Julia Marie Beilschmidt. Among the variations was one name that wasn't mine. One that I that I had wished I had, at least when I grew up a bit more. Julia Hedervary.

I closed the diary. It was ridiculous how much of a silly school girl I was. I'll admit, back then, Garrett was pretty cute. A wimp, but still cute. He followed me around like I was his savior or something. When the other boys teased him for hanging out with a girl, I punched them in the face. He was my best friend. I thought we'd be together forever.

But, I had seen him go through the awkward teen phases. I laughed at him when his voice finally cracked and his peach fuzz made its grand appearance. I could never think of him in that way ever again. It was a very scarring time for me, actually. I honestly don't think I'll ever get over it.

It's almost funny how times can change. Especially now. Things would never be the same again.


	2. Chapter 2

I saw the flick of Katerina's long white skirt from the corner of the screen. She had been out with Garrett for hours. The clock at the corner read ten o'clock. While she was gone, I had the sound on my laptop turned up to full volume. I laughed out loud to myself. Those screaming goats never get old.

"What do you think you're doing?" Katerina said.

"Watching goat videos," I said simply. She should feel honored that I turned down the volume a few notches for her.

"I thought you said you were going to unpack." She looked disgusted by the half opened boxes that I went through to find my laptop. I had moved them from my mattress to the floor. I needed to move them because I was sprawled out on my stomach up on my naked bed.

"I said I needed to unpack, not that I was going to do." I clicked on the next video. It was one of the goat videos, but this time they were screaming in a Justin Bieber music video.

Katerina scoffed. "I can't believe junk like this gets passed off as music."

I gave her a look. This wasn't junk. This was awesome parody in goat form.

"What are you, some sort of expert in music?" I asked rhetorically.

"I would like to think so," she said was as slight, smug smile. "I am going to be a classical music major."

I couldn't hold back my clipped off laugh. I knew I shouldn't laugh, but it was just so...perfect? Ironically perfect? I got paired up with a girl obsessed with technicality.

Katerina gave me a refined glare. "And...what would your major be?"

"I am planning to study in a field that is very important. Many try to be accepted, but few meet up to its awesome requirements."

"Oh really?" she said sarcastically.

"Try not to be too jealous."

"You're undeclared, aren't you."

"I have a declared major!" I defended. "I've decided to be majorly awesome!"

"Really, Julia." Katerina sighed and rolled her eyes. "Life takes more planning than that. What are you going to do with your life? Who are you going to be?"

"Anything and everything but forgotten." I didn't need these lectures. I got enough of those at home. Wasn't it enough that I just wanted to live to be remembered?

I whipped out a camera and snapped a picture of my room and roommate. The flash blinded her temporarily, and she blinked several times.

"What was that?" she asked.

"Nothing." I looked quickly out the window right behind me. I could see a little diner with their lights still on. Twenty four hour service by the looks of it. Plus, there was a little yellow bird on the sign. It looked like my kind of scene.

"I think I'm going to head out to pick up some Chicks."

"What?!" she exclaimed. Her eyes went wide.

"Jeez, you really need to learn to keep your panties out of a bunch. Chicks is the diner across the street."

"Oh," she said. She peeked out the window a bit. "Isn't it sort of late to eat out?"

"It's never too late for homestyle awesomeness."

"You use that word a lot, don't you?"

"Sorry, but I can't hear you over the sound of how awesome the word awesome is." I cupped my hand around my ear for added emphasis.

"Whatever. Do you really have to go out so late? Aren't you scared that someone might...you know...attack you?"

"I don't know if you're aware," I sat up and stretched. "But I've got some insane awesome ninja skills." I folded up my laptop and put it back in its bag. "And a thing of pepper spray."

I hopped off my bed and slipped my laptop bag strap over my shoulder. I patted my pants to make sure my key was still in my pocket.

"Laterz!" I called out. I left Katerina alone in our room where she could reflect on my mess of pure awesomeness.

* * *

The diner was surprisingly really busy, but at least there was free wifi. Major plus in my opinion. I really didn't expect this many people to enjoy breakfast all day like me. Score! I saw an empty table!

I pushed ahead of a family of five to snag the small booth by the window. The table wasn't big enough for them anyway.

I slid over by the window and set my bag at the space beside me. I unzipped it and got my laptop out on the table. My hand grazed something scattered on the table I didn't expect. Some weird papers with weird symbols and drawings.

"What the..." I looked up and saw a guy sitting across from me. He was hunched over some sort of work and was writing meticulously. I don't think he had noticed me yet. "Crap...I am so sorry."

He noticed me then. Actually, I think I startled him rather badly. He flinched and looked up quickly. His violet eyes flicked around and relaxed from behind his glasses. He pushed back the blond hair that fell in his face. "Oh...uh, hello!"

"Really, I'm sorry. I thought this was an empty booth." I put my laptop away and slid back to the edge. I looked around, but couldn't bring myself to get up. There really was nowhere else to sit. There wasn't even any room at the bar.

"It's okay. Surprisingly, it happens all the time," he said. He smiled sweetly at me and went back to his papers.

"Actually..." I started. He looked back up with a slightly confused look on his face. "Do you think we could just sit together? I know it's awkward, but there's no other place to sit, and we are both alone..."

"I...I guess that's alright..." he said.

"Great. You're awesome!" I slid back in and got my laptop out.

I reached my arm across the table. "Thanks a bundle. My name's Jules."

He paused for a moment and took my hand. "Matt."

"Here's your pancakes, honey." A waitress in her mid 40s came to the table with a plate of delicious breakfast.

"Thank you, Janet," Matt said. He let go of my hand to help get his pancakes. So, he smiled like that with everybody. It was really nice. You don't see that sincerity in a lot of people these days.

"Can I get you something, sweetie?" Janet winked at me. "Anything for Mattie's girlfriend."

"J-Janet! She's not my..."

"I'll take a cup of coffee," I said with a teasing smile. "And a stack of those lovely pancakes, please," I said, stacking on the sweetness.

"Coming right up!" Janet said. She winked back at me as she headed back to the kitchen.

"Why'd you say that?" Matt said. His face was growing red. "I'm never going to hear the end of this." He rested his forehead on his fingertips. "Not that it's your fault! Janet just likes her diner gossip," he added quickly, whipping his head up.

He cut into his pancakes with the side of his fork. He brought a piece to his face.

"I'll straighten her out when she comes back. Plus, I don't mind. You're pretty cute."

Matt choked on his pancakes. He pounded his chest a few times before he could get it down. "Wh-what?!"

"It's my personal policy. Cute guys who don't know they're cute should be told they are. It's almost cruel for them not to know."

Janet came back with my coffee. "Here's your joe, sweetie. Pancakes will be out in just a minute."

"Thanks, Janet. By the way, I'm not his girlfriend. We just met, like, fifteen seconds ago." That should do it. I took a sip of my hot, black coffee.

"That's alright. Pancakes are free anyway. It's pancake happy hour on Fridays from 10-12, just so you know. I'll still put the coffee on Mattie's tab."

She did the eye finger thing to Matt as she walked away. It was almost to say don't screw this up.

"You know, I could pay if you..." I started.

"No, it's okay. Janet wouldn't forgive me if I didn't act like a gentleman," Matt said.

"That's right!" Janet set a plate full of pancakes in front of me. They smelled so good. My mouth was watering. "There are just not enough nice guys like Mattie out there. You better hold on to your man," she said to me.

She smiled to the both of us. "You two kids have fun. Call if you need anything." She left us alone to enjoy our food.

"So, what's all this mumbo jumbo?" I asked, indicating to all the papers with a fork.

"Ah, sorry." Matt gathered some of the papers to one side of the table. "I'm just studying for the MCAT."

"M cat? You need to study for your pet?" I asked, taking a bite of my own stack. With one hand, I browsed the web for cats with pancakes.

He laughed quietly. I took another sip of my coffee. "No. The MCAT is a test I have to take to get into medical school. It stands for Medical College Admissions Test."

"Oh, so you want to be a doctor?"

"Yeah. I have ever since I was a little kid." He shuffled through a few of the papers. He squinted at some of the figures. "Do you mind if I borrow your laptop for a bit?"

I usually didn't let anyone touch my laptop. But he was going to buy me coffee. "Sure." I closed and handed my laptop across the table. "Just be careful with my baby."

"I'll try my best," he said. He concentrated on the screen as he typed away. "So, do you go to school here?"

"Yep! Brand spankin fresh! Got to go through the whole orientation thing tomorrow."

"Well, have fun with that," he said. "I've never really been much for those things, but you might like it."

"What?" I faked my shock and surprise. "You mean you don't like repetitive get-to-know-you games and getting asked the same questions over and over again? I am aghast. Isn't that what college spirit is all about?"

He smiled at me again. He really was cute when he did that. "It'll get better. College isn't all that bad."

"Judging by tonight, I think it'll be pretty awesome." I added an extra special smile to that one.

I could see his eyes just glance up over my laptop.

"I know what you're thinking," I said when I caught his eyes staring at me. I swished my long awesome platinum colored hair behind my shoulder. "Yes, it is natural."

"Huh?"

"My hair. And eyes. They're naturally like this. And no, I'm not albino. Not that I'm aware of anyway. I just hit the genetic jackpot." That's the first thing most people stared at. My permanent red-violet eyes and my hair that was so blonde, it was almost white. I didn't quite look the norm, but I liked it that way.

"Your skin isn't quite the right color. Plus, your eyes are a bit too much blue to be albinism," Matt said. "It's really pretty," he said even quieter.

"Why thank you, kind sir," I said. I think I could really get to like this guy. I could use a new guy friend to tease now that Garrett was headed to the dark side. He blushed even more.

"W-well, h-here's your laptop back." He handed it carefully back over to me. "I just had to edit and email my research to my professor."

"Research. That sounds about as fun as orientation," I said as I took my baby back in my arms. I kept it closed as I finished the rest of my pancakes. I chugged down the rest of my now warm coffee.

"Well, thanks for the coffee, Matt! I guess I'll see you around."

"Y-yeah. See you, Jules."

I smiled and waved goodbye as I shuffled out the door of the diner, bag in tote.

* * *

My dorm room was already dark by the time I got back. It was only a little after midnight. She was like an old granny. I was too tired to care. They expected us to get up at dawn to do that orientation stuff. I might as well catch a few Zs.

I felt around for my fleece blanket through the open boxes in the dark. Once I found it, I grabbed hold of it and climbed onto my bed. I didn't need much to cover me on the bare mattress. I had thoughts of warm pancakes and sweet smiles to get me through the night.


	3. Chapter 3

I flinched awake to the sound of a jarring alarm clock. I let out a small groan. Morning. My worst nemesis. So we meet again.

"Ah!" I shouted as the lights were suddenly flicked on. I threw my elbow over my face to try to block the burning luminance. "My eyes! Why the f-"

"Shut up."

I took a chance and shifted my arm. Katerina was up and at 'em already. Her legs shuffled from under her nightie as she made her way to the coffee pot.

"Tell me the truth. You're the devil incarnate, aren't you?" I said, my voice rough.

"Room rule number one, Julia: don't talk to me before I've had my coffee."

I could hear the hot water go through the machine. The strong smell of coffee permeated through the room. The scent tried to unwillingly pull me out of my sleepy stupor. I grabbed the edge of my blanket and threw it over my head, leaving my feet bare.

The sound of the coffee hitting the pot made me feel uncomfortable. I squirmed on the mattress. I sat up and jumped off the bed. I exited the room and went down the hallway to the communal bathroom.

The bathroom was full of steam when I opened the door. A girl was leaning towards a mirror, a purple towel wrapped around her body. She looked my way and flipped her bouncy, blonde, slightly curled hair.

"Hey," she started.

"Out of my way, I have to pee," I said as I made my way past her.

I got to a stall and did my business. When I came back out, the girl was still there. I went to the sink next to her to wash my hands. She was leaning even closer, mascara wand in hand, applying the thick black goo to her already long eyelashes.

"Feel better after your tinkle, cranky pants?" she asked. Her mouth rested slightly open as she finished up her mascara application.

"Much better," I said. I dried my hands and held one out to her. "And the name is Jules, not cranky pants. And definitely not Julia." My roommate couldn't seem to get that through her head.

"Ooh, I like it!" She put her mascara away and shook my hand. "Pretty nickname. Like jewelry. Mine's Chessie. Short for Francesca."

"Yeah, so why are you putting your makeup on in here? Don't you have a mirror in your room?"

"Yeah, but my roommate is still sleeping. I wanted to get up early so I could look perfect."  
I wish I was still asleep. Chessie got out a tube of lipgloss and started shining her plump lips.

"You look pretty much the same..." I said. It was true. She looked the same only...shinier.

"Oh, I know," she said. She smoothed her lips together and gave me a half-smile. "I'm gorgeous on my own. I just really like makeup."

Her eyes followed me up and down. Her half-smile became full blown. "You aren't half bad yourself."

"Of course not. I'm awesome."

Her fingers found the ends of my long hair. Her eyes searched up and down again. "You should come by my room sometime." She winked at me. "I'll make it worth your while."

She might be a bit odd, but I was too tired to care. I yawned. "I think I'll catch some more Zs. See ya later, Chessie."

"Sure, Jules. You get your beauty sleep, ma chère." Chessie went back to her mirror and bag of makeup.

I got back to my room, and Katerina was already dressed. A dress this time. Perfectly smooth. She was sitting at her desk, drinking her coffee and reading a book.

I splat back on my bead, not bothering with the blanket.

"Aren't you going to get ready?" she asked.

"Nope."

"There's only an hour left until we have to meet with our welcome groups."

"I have a whole hour?!" I twisted around and got my blanket. "Be a doll and wake me up fifteen minutes before. Or after. I don't really care."

"Are you finally going to unpack today?"

"Let's take this one step at a time. As of right now, my 'today' hasn't even started."

It didn't take long to fall back asleep with Katerina ignoring me. I was woken up again when I heard he door slam. Looks like she had finally left. I sat up and stretched. I looked at Katerina's clock across the room. I had twenty minutes. I might as well get ready. I got up and went through my boxes trying to find some clean clothes to wear.

* * *

My welcome group was meeting out on the main lawn. The wet grass from dew and the sprinkler system was soaking through my tennis shoes. My groups were sitting on blankets of various colors. I set my laptop bag down first and chose to sit on the black fuzzy one with the empty space.

"Cutting it kind of close, aren't you Jules?"

I looked across the way and smiled."What are you talking about? I'm always right on time, Gary."

"Don't call me Gary."

"Or what? You can't touch this awesomeness!" I bragged. Garrett rolled his eyes. "I didn't know you were in my welcome group. Why didn't you tell me?"

"Guess it just didn't cross my mind."

"Bullshit. You know it was Kateri-"

"Good morning, fish!" one person said loudly. "My name is Pete, and I am your welcome guide here at Wilson University!"

"Wu?" I said. That was kind of a lame acronym.

Pete snapped and pointed his fingers at me. "I like your enthusiasm! You all should be excited to be starting at WU this Monday. Can I get a woohoo?!"

Absolutely no one said anything. Either they were avoiding eye-contact with Pete or glaring in my general direction.

"Alrighty then! Since all of you are new here, why don't we go around and introduce ourselves? I'll start! My name is Pete Smith. I am a sophomore art major here at WU. I'm from a small town in Springfield, Iowa, and I collect and draw comic books. Anyone else want to go next?"

There was silence for a while, but then someone finally spoke up. They went around the circle one by one until I was the last one left.

"Alright, last one! What's your name?"

Through out that time, I had slowly become lower and lower inclined. I pulled myself back up, but my legs were a bit cramped.

"My name is Jules Beilschmidt," I said in a bored voice. "I'm from about 3 hours from here in a little piece of hell called Gilberton."

"Oh, looks like we got a repeat!" Pete interrupted. "You and Garrett are from the same place. You've got something in common."

Garrett face palmed from the obviousness.

"Really? I hadn't noticed," I said sarcastically. "It's not like we've known each other since birth or anything."

"That's why we have these activities," Pete said with an oblivious smile. "So we can all get to know each other and become friends."

I shook my head. "I'm undeclared and way too awesome to be putting myself through this. Do we really have to be here, Pete?"

"Ah, well...no," Pete stuttered out. "It's not required. But it's a good way to get to know the school and other people in your class."

I pointed to each person in the circle. "Sarah, Josh, Sam, Aubrey, Ashley, Jackson, Jake, Robert, Ben, Nick, and Casey."

Everyone was surprised by my attentiveness. No one had expected me to remember all of their names already.

"And let's not forget my precious little Gary-wary." I smiled at Garrett while he sent me a death glare. "I think I'm good in the name department," I said to Pete. There was rarely a time when I would forget a face.

I got up off the blanket. "Since I see no obligation to be here, I think I'll peace out. Who's with me!"

No one got up, though several looked like they wanted to. How lame.

Garrett sent me hand gestures, threatening me to shut up and sit back down. I ignored them.

"Suit yourselves. I'll go be awesome somewhere else."

With that, I grabbed my bag and walked back through the wet grass to my dorm room.


	4. Chapter 4

There. I got the last item out of the box and put it on my desk. I finally got my side of the room set up. Everything was exactly where it needed to be. My desk was personally organized. I had a slinky and silly putty in the corner, right next to a desk lamp holding pencils and whatnot. It wasn't exactly your typical college room setup, but believe me, they served an awesome, important purpose.

Katerina's side was definitely more typical than mine. It looked straight out of those cheesy college pamphlets. Girly lacy covers. Pictures of friends and some music stuff on the walls. On that aspect, I was rather plain. And by plain, I mean far more awesome. My covers were straight up black and white, giant striped horizontally. The only color present was a giant, stuffed, fluffy, awesome yellow chick.

It was nice to have some more free time. I hadn't been expecting this. It felt awesome. I opened up my laptop on my desk and stared at the dark screen. Well, that was interesting. My white bangs were licked up in a funny way. I must have gotten it from crawling under my bed to put boxes away. It was awesome, but I took it as I sign I really needed a shower.

I opened my closet door and pulled down my towel and shower supplies. My shampoos and soaps were lined up in my brand spankin new shower caddy. I made my way to the bathroom and hummed to myself. I broke out into full, awesome song once the warm water started running.

"Is this the real life? Is this just fantasy?" My awesome voice reverberated through the tile walls of the bathroom. "CAUGHT IN A LANDSLIDE, NO ESCAPE FROM REALITY!" I screamed. Oh yeah. This was going to be sweet. "OPEN YOUR EYES, LOOK UP TO THE SKIES AND SEE~"

* * *

My shower lasted the entire song. And of course, I sang the guitar solos as well. My awesomeness surprised me everyday. After rubbing my towel through my long hair, I wrapped it around my body and headed back out to the hallway, caddy in tote. It didn't look like anybody else had been in the bathroom to hear. Pity.

I dripped down the hallway and closed the door behind me. I ran my fluffy towel over my body once again for good measure. I let the towel fall to the floor. I fished through my drawers to find some awesome, fresh clothes for me to wear.

After I pulled my t-shirt over my head, something caught my eye. A brown speck crawled out from under my towel. There was no time for hesitation.

The closest object to me was my shower caddy. I picked it up by its yellow handles and slammed it down on the cockroach. I smiled in satisfaction until I saw it crawl back out from under. I picked up the caddy and slammed it down again. This time was different. I didn't have as firm control. The caddy seemed to wriggle under my hand. The caddy wasn't where I intended it to go, and the cockroach got away.

"Damn it," I said to myself. I'd have my vengeance. I looked down to the traitor shower caddy still in my hand. Half of my handle had snapped and detached itself from the caddy.

"Damn it," I repeated. To think I'd break it already two days into college life. I needed duct tape, but I don't think I had any. I would have gone through Katerina's stuff, but I was pretty sure she'd have a cow.

I thought I'd try my hall, though I don't really know why that would be a good idea. Most people would probably still be at the lame welcome activities.

I heard something out in the hallway. The faint sound of guitars strumming. It seemed like it was coming from next door. I guess someone else was here then. I knocked on the door to my neighbor's room.

It took her a while to actually respond. When she opened the door, she was wearing nothing but a pair of bright red underwear and a black lacy camisole. She stretched her arms up, revealing her flat tanned stomach.

"Hola!" she said with a sleepy smile.

She looked like she had just rolled out of bed. Her layered brown hair flipped and stuck out in all directions. The source of the music seemed to be coming from a little stereo with an iPod hooked up to it.

"Yeah, I was wondering if I could use some duct tape," I said.

"Um..." She drifted off into thought. She wandered back into her room but left the door open. She opened one of the drawers in her desk and pulled out two rolls of tape. "Looks like I've got red and mustache. Which one would you like?"

"Mustache, of course," I said.

She smiled widely and came back with the black and white tape.

"Thanks. I'll bring it right back," I said as she handed it off to me.

"No problema. What do you need it for?" she asked out of curiosity.

"I tried to kill a cockroach. Unfortunately, my shower caddy was the one who bore most of the wounds."

She laughed. "Oh so that's what those noises were! I thought someone was killing their roommate already."

I laughed with her. "Kesese, if only..."

She laughed even harder. "Ha ha, I like your laugh! You don't like your roommate?"

"Kesese, my laugh is pretty awesome. My roommate is alright if you don't mind a cranky, nit-picky witch that runs off with your best friend the moment they meet each other."

"Ooh, tough luck. My name is Olive, by the way."

"Jules. How do you like your roommate?" I said.

"She's pretty interesting. She's actually really nice," Olive said. She ruffled her hair up a bit. She jumped up onto the bed with the red coverlet. The other bed must have been her roommate's. It was filled with purple scenes of Paris.

"So, d'ya not feel like going to the welcome activities either?" I asked.

"Nah, I like sleeping in way too much. I actually made my schedule so I wouldn't have any morning classes," Olive explained. "Plus, I really don't think I'll have trouble making friends." She smiled at me.

It's true. She didn't seem like the kind of person people were likely to dislike. She had too much of a sunny, carefree personality.

"I was thinking about heading to the gym. Do you want to go with me?" she asked.

I smiled right back. "Now that's what I'm talking about! I'll meet you in the hall. I've got some things to fix first." I waved the roll of duct tape in my hand.

"Right. See you in a minute then." Olive went over to her drawer and found a pair of running shorts. She slipped them on over her underwear with a yawn. I closed the door to her room as she pulled her cami over her head.

I got back to mine. I reached down for my broken shower caddy still on the floor. I wrapped the mustached tape around my yellow caddy. There. Good as new. If not better.  
I found a ponytail and tied up my long hair to the top of my head. My hair swiveled back and forth as my body moved.

"Hey! Ready to go?" I whipped my hair around to see Olive in my doorway. I smiled and quickly grabbed my bag.

"Vamos, amiga!"


	5. Chapter 5

The thing about gyms is that I like to own every single piece of equipment. Olive and I had started off on the cardio machines. Olive stuck with the treadmill. She had her iPod plugged in and was nodding along to whatever song was playing as she ran. She had some crazy endurance. I think she was on mile seven, and she didn't even look tired.

"Hey!" I tapped her on her shoulder.

Olive stopped and rode to the back of her treadmill. She ripped her earbuds from her ears. She landed on the ground and staggered a bit. Her smile was as shaky as her footing.

"Whoa, my legs feel like jelly!"

I guess she really had been tired. She was just remarkably good at hiding it.

She sighed. "I'm tired. I could really go for a nap. And a smoothie."

"Sounds great, but could you spot me first?" I asked.

She gave an exhausted nod, and we went over to the weight machines. I fixed up the bar and laid down at the bench press. I lifted the bar from the stand and brought it down to my chest. Olive leaned lazily against the stand as I pressed rep after rep.

"Hey little girl, you look lost," I overheard. I tuned my head to see a guy over by the free weights. A girl who looked pretty intimidated by the dumbbells looked even more intimidated by the overly muscular man staring down at her. "This doesn't look like any place for you. Why don't you take a step back and leave the heavy lifting to the real men?"

I frowned. She was cute. She didn't look like she stepped into the gym very often. The only part of her hair that was tied up was a single pink ribbon around one of her blond locks.

"Olive," I said, strained, as I pushed the bar up. Olive obediently stopped leaning on the stand and helped guide the bar back into its place.

I sat back up and stretched my arm across my chest. "Why must guys always act like idiots around cute girls?" I asked. Olive shrugged her shoulders. I planted my feet and started to make my way to the couple.

"Yo dude!" I got his attention. He looked a little surprised to see me. I could see his eyes roam, gaging my awesome toned muscles. "I know we don't know each other, but I saw you and I just thought I should let you know that you're looking kinda small."

"Excuse me?" He crossed his arms over his chest, making sure to flex his biceps.

"Oh sorry," I said. "That wasn't quite right. What I meant to say is that you're looking REALLY small."

He uncrossed his arms and let his mouth be agape. "Are you being serious right now?"

"Really, bro! It's sad! Do you even lift?"

"Do I even..." he started in disbelief.

"Lift," I finished. I lifted my arms like I was pushing up a barbell. "I mean, this girl," I said indicating to the girl he had been bullying,"looks bigger than you. She could probably give you a feel pointers."

The girl held her hands out in front of her and shook them. "Oh no, I..."

"You must be out of your mind if you think any girl is going to tell me what to do!" the muscle head said angrily.

"You know, maybe you should start off in water aerobics," I wouldn't let up. "It seems more your speed."

"You better shut up," he threatened me. It looks like I was making him really angry.

"Ha ha!" I laughed. "You must be out of your mind if you think any guy who doesn't even lift is going to tell me what to do!"

He clenched his fists and breathed in really slow. "Look. I'm not looking for any trouble."

"Good. Because it wouldn't be very honorable of me to fight a guy that doesn't even lift."

"For God's sake, I lift! Of course I lift!"

"Really? It really doesn't look like it. You should probably step it up. Give the three pounders a rest already," I egged him on.

"I could lift circles around you. I could lift two, no, three times more than you!"

"Oh really?" I raised my eyebrows. "I highly doubt that. Can you even pick up the bar?"

"That's it!" The guy stomped over to the bench press. "We're ending this right now."

He took off the clamps and added sixty pounds to each side. He strained to get the bar off the stand. He lifted it up and down three times then put it back. He was panting with a cocky smile when he sat up."I'd like to see you top that!"

"Ooh, sounds dirty."

Leaning on the railing, Chessie looked down at us.

"Can I join in?"

"What is it with all these women in the gym today?" the guy muttered a little too loudly to himself.

"I know this weekend is typically to let the students get to know each other better." Chessie was swift to join us as she came down the stairs. She was wearing a tight pair of yoga pants and a gym bra. "But I really don't think this is what they had in mind."

Chessie wrapped her arm around my shoulders and twirled my long ponytail in her fingers. "I know she's a sexy fox, but try to keep it in your pants."

The guy blushed from the implications and the outfit Chessie was wearing. His eyes didn't no where to look. "I wasn't...why would I even want to..."

"Pfff, as if he'd even have a chance," I said.

"Oh hey, Chessie!" Olive said. "Want to go get smoothies with us?"

"Sounds good to me. Let's go, girls!" Chessie agreed.

We left arm in arm, leaving everyone in the gum baffled in our uncontainable awesomeness.

* * *

"Oh, I forgot to introduce you guys! Jules, this is my roommate, Chessie. Chessie, this is Jules. She lives next door to us." Olive sipped on her strawberry banana smoothie.

"I know Jules. We met briefly in the bathroom." Chessie sipped on her own mango smoothie.

"Yep. So, you guys are roommates?" I had gotten a mixed berry smoothie. It was actually pretty good. The smoothie place had not been too far off campus.

"Yeah. By the way Chessie, I didn't know you were going to workout. I thought you were going to do all of those welcome activities."

"I ditched at lunch. I thought that going to the gym would be a better way to get to know the 'student body,'" Chessie said slyly. She smiled through her straw.

I choked on my smoothie as I laughed.

"I missed the first part. What was that thing at the gym all about, Jules?" Chessie asked.

I regained my control. "I was just messin' with the guy. He was being a jerk," I said. I took another sip.

"Could you really lift more than him?" Olive asked.

"Nah, but I'd give him a run for his money," I said.

"You wouldn't even give the poor guy a chance. I personally wouldn't mind giving that guy a few reps, if you know what I mean." She played with her straw with her tongue.

Olive giggled. "Chessie, you're so bad!"

"Oh but being bad feels so good." She smiled.

"You can't just touch awesomeness like this," I said indicating to the rest of my body. "No way I'd let a jerk be the first."

Chessie's eyebrows knit together.

"What?" I asked.

"Haven't you ever had a boyfriend?" she asked.

Nope," I said simply. I took another sip of smoothie.

Chessie pretended to faint dramatically.

I shrugged my shoulders. "Yeah, I'm surprised too. Guys are just intimidated by my awesomeness, I guess."

"No. This is not okay!" Chessie said. She spread her fingers out on the table. "I swear, we will find you a man before the end of the school year."

"Look, it's not that big of a deal..."

"Olive, are you in or not?" Chessie said.

Olive smiled. "Sure. Sounds like fun!"

"Guys, you really don't have to do this."

"But we want to," Chessie insisted. "We're friends aren't we? Friends do these things for each other."

Olive nodded in agreement with her smoothie.

I sighed. "Well, I guess it wouldn't hurt..."

Chessie grinned. "Oh, this is going to be good!"

That certain smile had me a little nervous, but I laughed anyway. They were my friends. However new and different they might be, I might as well trust them.

**AN: *College disclaimer: No one at the gym is actually going to tell you not to work out. And if they do, someone would shut them up very, very quickly. Speaking of jerks, you guys should feel proud of me :) I got my very first troll! And it was on this story! Every time I read the review, it reminds me how awesome you fans are :3 So thank you for all of the support!**


	6. Chapter 6

Mmm, how perfectly glorious. I settled further into my sheets. This is exactly what weekends were meant for.

Katerina came back into the room after doing something all day I couldn't really remember or care about.

"Have you been in bed this whole time?" she asked.

"Of course not," I said. I had to get up in order to reach my pop tarts.

"You do realize it's like seven. At night."

"That early?" I clicked on another page on my browser. "I have more time than I thought."

"To do what exactly?"

I shrugged my shoulders. "I don't know. Something is bound to pop up."

"Julia, you can't just lay in bed and mess with your laptop all day," Katerina lectured.

I look at her over the top of my screen. "I hope you realize I'm going to take that as a challenge."

"Jules!" Chessie suddenly burst into our room. Katerina was startled so badly, she jumped about three inches in the air. She nearly had a heart attack when she saw what Chessie was wearing. Or not wearing, I suppose. The only thing Chessie had on was some bright pink lacy lingerie.

"Wh-what do you think you're doing?" Katerina exclaimed, blushing furiously.

"Oh?" Chessie pushed her blonde hair behind her ear and noticed my roommate. "You must be Jules' roommate. My name's Chessie. I live next door."

"Whatever happened to knocking? You can't just burst into other people's rooms looking like that!" Katerina continued.

Chessie looked at me with a look of disbelief. I nodded my head. "Chessie, that's my roommate, Katerina."

"It's nice to meet you I suppose. Though, in the future, I hope you would pay more mind to our privacy, even if you have no sense of privacy of your own," Katerina huffed. She was trying hard not to look at Chessie.

Chessie would have none of that. Her hands started at her hips and slowly moved front and center around the waistline of her underwear. Her fingers traced up her flat stomach and cupped around her breasts. She used her palms to press her boobs together even further than her push up bra. Her thumbs quickly slid under her bra and flipped it up, flashing my roommate.

"Ah!" Katerina screamed. She tried to shield her eyes.

I rolled my eyes and slid off my bed. The challenge would have to be postponed this time. I put my laptop in my bag and slung the bag over my shoulder. "Come on, Chessie." I pushed against her stomach.

"What? I was just giving your roommate a better view," Chessie said innocently. Still, she followed me out of my room.

"Now that you've successfully scared my roommate's life, no objections by the way, is there something that you wanted?" I asked as I closed the door behind us.

Chessie put her bra back into place and adjusted her boobs. "Yeah, I really need your help."

* * *

Olive was carefully painting her nails red as Chessie tried on yet another outfit.

"Okay, what about this one?"

Chessie had narrowed down her choice of shorts. Solid white ones. She was still having a bit of trouble picking out her top for tomorrow.

Olive's eyes narrowed as she assessed the outfit. "I liked the last one better."

"Of course you did. The last one was red. What do you think, Jules?"

I really didn't know as much about fashion as Chessie or Olive. There were just those little ensembles that sometimes showed up on Pinterest, and even then I didn't understand much. The shirt she had on this time was a darker blue.

"Didn't the other one bring out the blue in your eyes better or something?" I said. Yeah, I didn't just pull that out of my butt or anything.

Chessie looked into her mirror. She primped up her hair. "Yeah, but this one shows a bit more cleavage. Gives the boys a bit more fun."

"I'm pretty sure they'll already be looking without the extra encouragement," I remarked, remembering our little encounter with my roommate. If Katerina was looking, everyone would.

Chessie grinned. She stripped out of the shirt and went back to her closet. It was positively packed with clothes, but she managed to put it away and find the lighter blue blouse back. It was actually pretty impressive.

She shifted and twisted in front of the mirror with the new garment until she was satisfied. "Alright, time for shoes..."

Chessie pulled out her multiple shoe organizers and sat down in front of her closet.

"Is it really that big of a deal?" I said.

"Of course it is! It's the first day of school! You can't just wear anything!" Chessie insisted.

"Olive doesn't look like she's freaking out," I pointed out. She was just chilling on the floor with me.

"Oh, I already picked out my outfit." She twisted her nail polish closed and looked at her work. "I'm just not as picky as Chessie."

"It's not my fault that I look amazing in absolutely everything. It's hard to choose," Chessie said. She found a pair of heels that were up to her standards. "Plus, I have to pay more attention to this stuff than you do."

Why?" I asked.

"Chessie's a fashion major," Olive explained. Chessie was busy holding up different pieces in front of the mirror. "The world as we know it would end if she hit any fashion faux pas."

"Ha! That's like saying that you would explode if you ate a deep fried cheeseburger," Chessie retorted.

"Huh?" I was getting even more confused.

Olive rolled her green eyes. "I'm a nutrition major," she explained again. "And I can eat whatever I want, as long as I'm careful of course. A couple of cheeseburgers aren't going to give me diabetes."

"Honey, not all of us can have your metabolism," Chessie said. "You eat all the time."

"I can't help it. I just like healthy stuff. Everything is just so good." Olive carefully picked up a grape from a bowl nearby and popped it in her mouth. She offered the bowl out to me.

"What about you, Jules?" Chessie was done picking out her outfit and sat down on the floor with us. "What sort of classes are you taking this semester?"

"Awesome ones," I said. I picked out and started chewing on my own grape.

Chessie grinned. "Good. Then we'll probably see you around some time."

"Maybe," I allowed. The only classes that I knew for sure were the ones that were required for all undergraduates.

It was sort of weird how it seemed like all these people had their whole life sorted out. So what if I didn't know specifically who I was going to be? We were only eighteen. Why couldn't we just do whatever we wanted, whatever we liked without having to put a label on things?

"I think I'm going to head back," I said, putting my laptop away and standing back up. "I'll need my awesome sleep before Katerina wakes up God awful early again."

Chessie shook her head as she grabbed a grape. "Good luck with her."

"See ya tomorrow, Jules!" Olive smiled cheerfully.

* * *

I woke up to the stinging light. Ugh, did I really have to invest in one of those eye mask things? I grabbed my giant stuffed bird and smothered my face. At least Katerina was relatively quiet. Except of course for her noisy coffee maker. Once it stopped brewing, I would be able to fall back asleep if only for a few minutes.

I woke up again to the awesome, beautiful sound of an electric guitar solo. Much better.

"What in the world is that noise?" Katerina said. She sounded annoyed. I sat up in my bed and stretched out my arms.

"My alarm," I said obviously.

She shook her head and went back to making her bed.

I slid out of bed and put on my flip flops to head out to the bathroom. After I was done with my business, I came back and noticed something in front of our door. It was a pile of neatly folded clothes and a note that read:

"Good morning, beautiful! Wear these or else!- XOXO Chessie"

"Hey, Jules! I'm not up yet, but I hope you have a fantabulous day! -Olive

PS- You better do as Chessie says. She looks pretty serious."

There were two kiss marks on the note. One in red. One in pink. They must have written this up last night after I left.

I brought the clothes into my room and laid them out on my bed. Katerina was already gone. They weren't exactly my usual style, but I guess they worked. I wiggled my way into the tight black mini skirt. The tank top was white, layered and crinkled by black lace. Chessie must have picked it out. I guess it could have been a lot worse. The cropped leather jacket covered up the sheer girliness of it all. Gave me a bit more edge.

I checked the clock. It was getting pretty close to class time. I added my own pair of converse to the outfit and brushed my teeth quickly. I grabbed my laptop and pop tarts and headed out the door to my first day of college classes.


	7. Chapter 7

"Ooh, Chessie was right! You're looking good, Jules! Muy calliente."

I turned around to see Olive trailing after me in her first day of school outfit. I wouldn't exactly say it was as "fashionable" as what Chessie chose, but it looked good on her. She had on a pair of little denim shorts that showed off her tan legs and an oversized red shirt. The neckline was too big and draped over her shoulder. Her sleeves were long and went past her hands. Her sandals flopped against the pavement.

"Hey Olive. You look comfortable," I said.

"Very," she said with a smile. "The first day is always the hardest to stay awake, but I'll get through it somehow. I've gotten too used to sleeping in. I'm going to miss my little siestas." She stretched her arms up over her head. We were still walking in the same direction. "You wouldn't happen to be going to English with Dr. Caliber, would you?" she asked.

"Sweetness! We actually do have a class together," I said. "It must be fate that we were put into the same awesomely boring required class."

"It probably won't be that bad," Olive said.

"All of these required classes are the same. Some professor stuffs a couple hundred kids in a room and lectures about something he doesn't care about to people who really don't care what he says. By definition: awesomely boring."

"But hey! I'll be there!" Olive hooked her arm around mine. "We can sit together! It'll be fun! If it's going to be so boring, why would it be awesomely so?"

"Because I'll be in the class, obviously. Now come on. We've got to pick out the best seats."

* * *

"He looks a bit young to be a professor," Olive noted.

Olive and I snatched prime seats in the middle of the auditorium. I was annoyed by the tiny foldable desk we were required to sit in. How did they expect anyone to work on these? I managed to finally balance my laptop on the flimsy piece of wood.

I looked up to see the guy waiting at the front. Olive was right. He didn't look that much older than us. I couldn't quite pin down his age. It was hard to tell with the suit and the bushy eyebrows. It was like he was trying to look decrepit, yet he had the messed up hair of any college student.

"What's with the suit?" I wondered out loud.

"It is one o'clock on the dot," the guy said. "Class will now begin."

"If you don't already know, I am not Doctor Xavier Caliber. I am the head Teacher's Assistant for this class, and Dr. Caliber asked me to fill in," he continued. "My name is Arthur Kirkland. You can come to me for this semester and the next regarding any question on homework and grading policies. Today we'll be going over the syllabus in detail."

The large stack of papers made its way around the room. This Arthur guy was reading verbatim off the page. I know this class was required for all freshman, but seriously. They could raise their expectations a little. They could assume that we could at least read. I got my paper and quickly flipped it over. Crap, even the whole back was full. Absolutely no doodle room. Fine, if he wanted to play it that way...

I got out a notebook to work on started on my masterpiece right across the syllabus. The extra lines of words gave it a...je ne sais quoi or whatever that means. It means I really didn't care that the rules of the class or the dates for assignments interrupted my awesome drawing.

It ended up being a pretty accurate depiction of our TA. I went to show Olive, but she was already asleep. A tiny little puddle of drool fell on her syllabus as she was draped across her desk.

I checked my laptop for the time. 1:43. Geez, he was going to take up the whole time with this.

"And again. If you have any questions, ask me, not the professor. He can get pretty busy with his other classes. If you have nothing else, you're free to go."

The students started gathering up their things and leaving. Olive was still sound asleep.

"Hey, rise and shine, sleepy butt," I said as I nudged Olive awake.

"Hmm?" Olive murmured awake. She wiped at her lips to get rid of the drool. "Class over already? Where are you headed next?"

"I've got to stick around here for a bit. You know. Awesome stuff."

"Okay. Have fun with that. See you around, Jules."

"Yeah, and try to stay awake in your next class, no matter how boring it is." She gave me a classic smile as she left. Soon, it was just me and the TA in the classroom. I propped my feet up on the chair in front of me and leaned back.

I could see Arthur in the front pacing and whatnot. Straightening papers. Erasing the invisible spots from the board.

As the door closed as the last person left, a weird burst of wind carried my syllabus to the front of the class. It floated to the floor, and Arthur picked it up. He frowned at my beautiful drawing of him. His eyebrows knit together, and he crumpled up the paper.

"It's one thing to mock me. Believe me, I've had worse, and in fact, that was a rather half-baked attempt. It's another thing to defile something this important. This might be really useful to you down the road." He tossed my masterpiece in the trash.

"Oh, then I guess we're even now," I said in a mockingly hurt voice. "I offended you. You offended me. I worked very hard on that. You should be honored that you made such an impression on me. Let's just clean the slate. And chillax about the syllabus. There's a digital copy online."

"Excuse me, but are you staying here for any particular reason? There is no class scheduled after this one," he said.

"Calm down, toots," I said as I opened up tumblr. "I'm supposed to be here. Part of my awesome major program."

"And...what major would that be?" he asked.

"Undeclared. Part of the exploratory thing. I was supposed to meet up with the prof after class."

Arthur sighed. "He never emailed me about this. He only told me I had to handle the class."

"Better check your email again," I said.

He pulled out his Blackberry phone and fumbled through the buttons. He must have found what he was looking for because he muttered under his breath and put the phone back in his pocket.

"Whatever. Do you know if there's going to be anymore of you showing up?"

I looked around the room. There was no one else besides us and the next class time had already passed.

"Looks like it's just us," I winked at him. I knew they were going to split the undeclareds among the different departments, but I didn't know I'd be on my own. That's cool. I'd be fine. I'm awesome on my own.

"Great," Arthur rolled his eyes. "Looks like you'll be with the English department for a little while."

"Fantasmic. So...can I go? You've got nothing else to read for me, right?" I asked.

"Wh...Why would you go? You haven't even done anything yet!" Arthur said rather flustered.

"Look. I don't know what I'm doing. You don't know what I'm doing. Just get back to me when you've come up with something awesome and Englishy for me to do." I put my laptop away and over my shoulder. I made my way through the empty aisle to exit the classroom..

"J-Julia! Wait a minute!" Arthur spluttered, searching though some papers.

"Ooh, impressive! Class of two hundred and you managed to sort of get my name right. The name's Jules. See you around, bushy-brows."

* * *

Looks like I awesomely survived another first day. First day of college in fact. I think I could deserve to treat myself a little bit. And right now, I could really go for a short stack of pancakes.

I crossed the street over to Chicks. They might not be free this time, but hey, they'd be worth it. I still remember the taste from last time. So hot and sweet. Or maybe I was just thinking of the company.

I sat down at a booth by the window and got out my laptop. I plugged my headphones so I could listen to YouTube videos.

Something plaid caught my eye. It wadn't on my screen. It was slightly over it. A plaid, flannel elbow lifted a hand to go though a head of honey colored hair. I smiled and slipped my headphones off.

"Hey there, stranger," I called out.

Matt looked over at me shyly. "Hey, uh...Jules."

"Looking for a place to sit?" I slapped the spot on the table across from me. "Park it, Mattie."

"You remembered me," he said as he slid in.

"Yeah, I'm pretty awesome. I've got a thing for names. You're not half bad yourself if you remembered mine," I said with a smile.

He turned a little pink at that. Gosh, he was adorable. So much fun.

"So what's up? You were looking pretty distressed back there," I said.

Matt turned even redder. "Oh, it was really nothing. Something just...threw me off a bit. That's all."

"Come on! You know you can tell me. We're not complete strangers. We've met twice now, you know." I winked at him.

"Ah, well...it's just. You were...in my spot," he said ashamed.

"What?"

"This booth...it's my favorite place to sit in the place. It's silly really. Don't worry about it. I'll figure it out," he mumbled out.

"That is quite a predicament." I grinned. "See, this is becoming a favorite of mine, too. I guess we'll just have to share."

Matt nodded. "Work out some sort of schedule or something."

"I don't mind sitting with you," I said. Matt looked up surprised, gaging me. "You don't mind, do you?"

"No," Matt said. "I actually kind of like the idea," he added quietly.

"Alrighty then! Looks like we've got a sweet deal going. I'll sit here when I feel like it, you'll sit here when you feel like it, and we'll kick out anyone who tries to steal our spot."

Matt chuckled under his breath. "Sounds good."

"So what's it this time, sweet cheeks? The usual?" the waitress said. She was pretty old. In her seventies at least. The lenses on her glasses were pretty thick. Like half an inch thick. She was probably blind as a bat.

"Muriel..." Matt was turning beet red.

"The usual it is then, honey. Ha, after two years, you'd think you'd go for a change. I think I'd about have a heart attack if something different happened," Muriel said.

"And I'll have a coffee and a short stack, please," I said.

Muriel's hand went to her chest, and she started gasping for air. Matt and I shot up out of the booth. I wasn't quite sure what to do. Matt had a better idea. His hands were helping Muriel.

Muriel waved him off. "I'm fine, honey. I'm fine. You just scared me a little, sweetie."

Matt sighed in relief and backed away. He got back in the booth.

Muriel pushed her glasses farther up her nose. "Now, let me get a good look at you."

Her wrinkly hands went to mine, and she felt them. Her head nodded up and down as she looked me over.

"Alright, turn around now, sweetie," she said.

I was a little confused of why she wanted me to turn, but I did it anyway. She stopped me when I had my back towards them.

"Ooh, you did good, Mattie baby. She ought to be lots of fun." She slapped my butt. I whipped around and saw her heading back to the kitchen. "God, knows you need it."

"I'm...I'm sorry! Muriel...she's..." Matt tried to explain. He could hardly get his words out. He was so embarrassed he couldn't even look at me.

"I like her. She's a feisty old lady," I said as I slid back in the booth.

"I'm sorry. That all the waitresses assume that we're... They've gotten kind of attached to me, so..."

"I think it's cute how they all care so much," I said.

"Alright kiddos, extra fast. Extra hot. Extra on the house." Muriel came over with a tray with our plates. She set them down and started filling up our coffee mugs. "Back to school special."

"Thanks, Muriel," Matt said.

"Yeah thanks. By the way, we're not actually together," I clarified. "We're more of 'booth acquaintances.'"

"Oh, you kids and your lingo these days. I don't care what you call it. Just no hanky panky. That I can see." She slipped off her glasses and winked at me. She turned around and put her glasses back on.

I couldn't hold it. I burst out laughing. I couldn't help but grab my sides and lay down on the booth. God, I loved that woman.

"Oh...shut up and eat your pancakes," Matt muttered.


	8. Chapter 8

"So, I guess you survived orientation," Matt said. He took the side of his fork and cut though his eggs over easy. The yellow yolk ran onto the plate.

"If by survive you mean run away screaming, then yes," I said. I bathed my pancakes in the sweet maple syrup.

Matt laughed at that. "Did you actually scream?"

"No, but I did get out of there as fast as I could. I've always been good at awesome exits," I explained.

Matt shook his head. "Wish I had done that. I couldn't help thinking that the whole time."

"So why didn't you do it?" I asked. I took a sip of the coffee. Mmm, good stuff.

"What?" He looked up at me surprised.

"Why didn't you run? If you wanted to, why didn't just you go? I skipped out and managed to get through my first day without a scratch."

"Well, not everybody can be you," he said. I nodded in agreement. "It wasn't all bad in the long run. My current roommates were actually in my welcome group."

"Well, it wasn't like I was skipping out alone," I felt the need to clarify. "I hung out with some of the girls in my hall. They're pretty awesome."

"That's nice that you've made some friends," Matt said. He brought a bite of egg to his mouth, and I started laughing.

"What?" he said. "Did I get yolk on my face?"

"Sorry. For a minute there, you sounded like my mother," I said.

"Oh." He looked down embarrassed.

"Moving on. So, do you take a lot of morning classes? You must if you're out by this time," I said.

"Y-yeah, a lot of my biology and chemistry classes happen in the morning. Usually my afternoons have labs, so it's nice to have breaks like this," he said. "What about you? Is your schedule too bad?"

"Eh, it's kind of on the fritz. Still trying to figure stuff out," I said and started on my pancakes. "What's going to work with me, you know?"

Matt nodded.

"So, this is your usual?" I said changing the subject. I eyed Matt's plate. His eggs were gone along with about a fourth of his pancakes. His two pieces of bacon were untouched. I quickly snagged one and chomped on an end. I gave him a smug smile.

"It's not quite my usual. Usually, I have another piece of bacon," he said, lifting an eyebrow at me.

"Living on the edge," I said, eating the rest of my stolen piece of bacon. I lifted a fist towards the sky for him in a way of showing encouragement.

"My whole day is off now," he said forlornly. He stuffed his other piece of bacon in his mouth, insuring I wouldn't take that one as well.

"It's good to be thrown off every once in a while. Quite healthy even," I said.

"Oh, and you're an expert?" he teased.

"In a way," I teased back.

"I guess anyone could be if they're on their laptop as much as you," he said. He nodded toward my baby. It was still open and on the table.

"The Internet is pretty much the greatest thing ever invented. Closely followed by pancakes. You on much?" I asked.

Matt shook his head and sipped on his coffee. "Ain't nobody got time for that."

I was about to be really turned off until I realized what he just did. I broke out in a grin, and he smiled behind his cup.

"You, sir, are officially and undeniably awesome," I said.

Matt shrugged his shoulders. "I get on when I can, which isn't much nowadays. Not everyone can have your level of expertise."

"Well, you're better than most people. Some wouldn't know a meme if it bit them on the face." My roommate came to mind. Though, I guess it wouldn't be too bad if a honey badger decided to gnaw on her face.

"So, are you one of those trolls then?" he asked.

I gasped. "You really believe I'm the kind of person to do that? Whatever gave you that impression?"

He gave me a look, probably remembering his lost piece of bacon.

"Alright, okay. I may have done my fair share of trolling, but I find that trolling has some practical, real life applications. Especially for those who really need it," I admitted.

"Well, you know what the stories say about trolls..." Matt implied.

"Oh, and what would that be?" I asked.

"They eat three plump goats and live happily ever after alone under a bridge," he said with a smile.

"That doesn't sound too bad to me," I said.

"Bridges are rather damp and lonely. Are you sure?" Matt continued.

"Meh, I'd rather wait for another troll to cross my bridge than to settle for some stupid goat." I took a vicious bite of pancake and grinned through my chewing.

* * *

When I got back, Katerina wasn't there. Her classes must not be over yet. That or she was with Garrett. I didn't want to think about that. I got my laptop out of my bag and set it on my desk. I plugged it in to its charger and flipped it back open. I found the English syllabus again and brought it up online. I'd have to rely on this version since my paper copy had a stroke of misfortune due to a pair of eyebrows in a suit.

I scrolled down to the calendar part. That was probably the most important section of the whole thing.

You had got to be kidding me...we already had an assignment? Didn't this guy have a life? We had to turn it in online by tonight.

On closer inspection, it didn't look quite so intimidating. We had to write a short essay, a few paragraphs really, describing who we were. Short essay, my ass. I could go on all day describing myself. What was there NOT to talk about?

I cranked through the essay faster than I expected. One word turned to ten, to twenty, to three pages. I guess that was as good of a summary as there was ever going to be.  
I was feeling pumped. Now that that was all over, there was only one thing left to do. I turned the volume of my laptop all the way up and turned iTunes on shuffle.

With all my boxes and stuff put away, the room was pretty much clear. I danced and twisted in front of the mirror, basking in my own awesomeness.

That wouldn't be for long. The door to my room flung open, and I could hear the doorknob angrily hit the wall. Katerina stood out in the hallway with her hands covering her ears.

"Hey," I yelled out. "Have a good day?"

Apparently not. Katerina left without a word or even setting her school stuff down. Well, so much for making conversation. Too bad for her. This was turning out to be an awesome party of one.

"My, my, you're looking mighty sexy."

I turned to the doorway. Katerina had left it wide open, and Chessie was leaning there, staring at me. She admired her handiwork of picking out my outfit.

"And pretty happy if I might add. Did you have a good day, ma chérie?"

"It was about as awesome as I expected," I answered.

"Bet the outfit did the trick," Chessie said as I pulled her into my room.

"Maybe. I did have a seventy year old blind lady hit on me," I said. I spun Chessie around as we danced to the music.

Chessie laughed and returned the dancing favor. "Sounds perfect! Exactly as I intended."

I saw Olive pass by my door. I don't think she saw us.

"Yo, Olive, we're in here!" I called. I was a little surprised she missed us in the first place. We were being rather conspicuous.

She reappeared. Her eyes were droopy, and it looked as though she could barely keep herself up. She must have just gotten out of classes. I guess first days really _were_ hard on her.

"Hey chicas. Having a fiesta? Sorry, I'm exhausted," she said.

"Aw, poor baby," Chessie cooed. She hugged Olive and slow-danced her into the room.

"Mmm, your boobs are soft," Olive said happily. She nuzzled her head further into Chessie's cleavage.

Chessie laughed.

"Ugh, there was so much to do today," Olive complained.

"Hate to break it to you, but there's an essay due for English. Just a heads up."

Olive groaned. Chessie patted her back. Olive sighed. "Thanks for the warning. I just don't want to do anything right now."

Olive stomach grumbled louder than my blasting music. She looked from Chessie to me.

"Um...do you think we could go get something to eat first? I'm starving. I ran out of snacks by my third class." she asked.

Chessie and I both burst out laughing. I paused the music and put my laptop away.

"Of course! I'm surprised you've even lasted this long," Chessie said as we all went out the door.


	9. Chapter 9

"I can't believe this!" I exclaimed loudly.

"You're telling me! He gave me a zero," Olive said.

"This is so not awesome!" I said even louder.

"If you have any questions," Arthur said loudly in an irritated voice. We may or may not have interrupted his lecture with our outbursts. He was standing arms crossed in the front of the class. Dr. Caliber was gone again today, so Arthur was teaching us again. "About your grades, feel free to ask me..."

I shot my hand up in the air.

"AFTER class," Arthur finished a little bit more irritated.

I crossed my arms as I sat in my desk. I tapped my foot as the clock ticked away at the class time. I barely heard his words when he dismissed the class. I turned toward Olive as I tried to make my way to the aisle.

I almost ran the other way. Olive hadn't moved an inch. She had her elbows resting on the tiny foldable desk. Her chin was resting on her intertwined fingers. She was scowling and glaring at Arthur at the front of the class.

"Uh...Olive? Are you okay?" I asked.

"A zero? He gave me a zero?! What the hell kind of mother fuc-" she said.

"Whoa there, how much sleep did you get last night, Olive?" I interrupted and asked her. She was kind of starting to scare me.

She sighed and moved her hands over her eyes. "None. My essay was probably crap. I was so tired and kept on getting distracted. I can't even remember what I wrote, but I know I don't deserve a zero."

"Alright honey." I patted her on the back. "Let me take care of this." I fished through my bag and got out a Snickers bar I had been saving for later. I threw it at her hands on her face, and it landed in her lap. She removed her hands and looked at the treat. "I'll talk to Arthur. You just try to relax. Have a Snickers. You've practically got a massacre on your hands."

"Mmm!" she said once she had the candy in her mouth. She starting to look a little more normal.

"Better?" I asked.

"Better! I'll meet up with you later, Jules." She waved as she got out of the class.

I stood by my seat until everybody else had left. A few people went to the front to ask Arthur questions, but they all went away eventually. I just had to wait them out. I put on my best creepiest grin and stared down Arthur.

"Oh Artie~" I sang down to him.

He was trying his best to avoid me, but he let out a groan. We were all alone now. There was no avoiding me now.

"You've made a couple of enemies today, Artie," I continued as I skipped to the front of the class. "That's not very smart. It's a shame. We were just starting to get to know each other."

"One: don't call me Artie. Two: you're the one who shouldn't be enemies with me. I am the one who determines your grade," he said.

"Huh? I'm pretty sure the professor gets the final say. Maybe I should talk to him about how his TA thinks he's incompetent." I might have been stretching it, but I do enjoy pushing buttons.

He rolled his eyes. "What do you want, Julia?"

"Jules, and I want an A because my essay was awesome. Plain and simple," I said.

He gave one short laugh. "Your essay? However entertaining, I only wanted around 400 words at max. Three pages was superfluous, and I don't take too kindly to liars. Am I really supposed to believe that you stalk hundreds of people everyday like you so described in your paper?"

I raised my eyebrow at him. "Have you ever heard of Facebook? And what exactly did Olive do wrong? She did the assignment. What made you think you could give her a zero?"

"Olive's essay was just confusing. There was one sentence that just said tomatoes prevent cancer. There was nothing whatsoever that addressed her life. She went further off the prompt than you did. Where you went overboard, she was lacking. Despite your interpretation of Facebook, your view on your own life has a unprecedented amount of fantasy and grandeur."

I raised my arms in defense. "And your point is? It's my life, not yours. That's the way I perceive it. You're the one who wanted to know what I thought of myself."

He shook his head. "That wasn't an appropriate answer to the prompt."

"Oh come on! You're being ridiculous!" I said.

"Jules! There you are!" The doors to the classroom opened. Chessie's skirt flounced up as she skipped down the stairs. "Olive told me I'd find you here."

"Chessie?" I asked. I was almost as confused as Artie who had never laid eyes on this strange, beautiful woman.

"I thought you might need some 'moral' support." She winked at me. She looked Arthur up and down. "Is he really a professor?"

"TA," Arthur explained. He crossed his arms. "Professor Caliber had an important meeting today. Can I help you?"

"So this TA is the grumpy butt who wouldn't lay off you even for the first assignment?" Chessie asked. She placed her elbow on my shoulder, leaned, and popped her hip out to the side. "What gives him the right?"

"You know what?" Arthur was growing flustered. "It's really none of your business, miss."

"Miss?" Chessie raised her eyebrows. "And it certainly is my business. These two girls just happen to be my friends, and I can't have all that negative energy around me. So change their grades, mister," she insisted with a slight edge of teasing.

Arthur looked angry but didn't really seem like he could say anything. Chessie just had that sort of impression on people, I guess. Arthur still held his ground.

"I'm not an unreasonable woman," Chessie said. "Tell you what. Change their grades, and I'll let you take me out on a date."

"Are you out of your bloody mind?! Th-that's completely inappropriate and unprofessional and-" Arthur spluttered.

"Calm down big boy." Chessie stopped leaning on me. "Olive or Jules will you give you my number when you're ready." She winked at him, chasséing and swinging her hips as she exited the classroom without another word.

Arthur sat down at the professor's table and rested his head on the wood.

"Why aren't you gone? What do you want from me?" he whined.

"An A," I said. "And another chance for Olive. You gave her a zero, for pity's sake. What kind of jerk wad does that?"

"Fine. Olive can have another chance. I'll count it as a late assignment if she redoes it and submits it by tonight. She'll get ten percent off. That's policy."

I nodded. That was probably the best I was going to get out of him for now.

"Can't do the same for you. You actually managed to pass the assignment, however poorly you perceive your grade. A 75 isn't that bad once you're in college."

"Doesn't matter," I insisted. "That was A material. I deserve nothing less than that."

He rubbed his hands over his eyes. "You seriously need an outlet," he grumbled. He whipped his head up then. "That's it!"

I gave him a weird look. "Talk to yourself much? And you think I need an outlet..."

"I'll give you an 90 on the assignment if you write a blog," he said quickly.

I gave him an even weirder look. "A blog? Are you telling me one of my assignments is to spend time on the Internet?"

He nodded.

I shrugged. "Okay. Works for me." I started to make my way up the stairs.

"Not so fast, Jules." I turned around to face him at the mention of my name. "You're still here for the exploratory program, right?"

"Yeah," I said tentatively. I don't think I liked the direction this was going.

"Your first post on the blog should be a well informed persuasive argument to improve an aspect of our school," he said a bit too proud of his idea.

"Uh uh. No way. No blog of mine is going to turn into one of those gung ho school spirit college propaganda. What does that have to do with the English department anyway?" I said.

"It's only for your first post. After that, you can make it what ever you want. You don't even have to mention our university."

I squinted at him. "What's in it for you?"

"Insight," he answered defensively but honestly. "It's part of my graduate project."

I rolled my eyes. "Whatever. I'll email you the URL once I've got something," I said. "Is that all?"

"Yes. You are dismissed," he said.

I rolled my eyes and climbed up the stairs.

* * *

Chessie was waiting for me outside. "Did it work?" she asked.

"Yeah. Olive's going to have another chance to do the assignment," I said.

"Great! Did you give him my number?" she asked again with more enthusiasm.

"No..." I said warily.

She shrugged and sighed. "It was worth the try..."

"Are you being serious? Him? Why him?" I asked with disbelief.

"It was just a shot in the dark," she dismissed. "I kind of have a thing for older men. And suits are like lingerie, you know. Granted, what he was wearing would be considered a ratty pair of underwear, but a little time with me and he'd be in tip top gorgeous shape in no time," Chessie said. "Either way, he's pretty cute. Did you see those eyebrows?" She giggled.

I rolled my eyes. "You're being strangely humanitarian today. Well, I'm done with classes. Want to go get some coffee and pancakes with me?" I offered.

She shook her head. "I've actually got a class in about ten minutes. I'll meet up with you later, darling, and you and Olive can tell me all about your TA."

She winked and headed off to her class across campus. I adjusted the strap on my laptop bag and headed off to Chicks in the opposite direction.


	10. Chapter 10

I'm not quite sure how long I was just sitting there. Trying to build up the theme to my blog took forever. Nothing ever seemed quite right. I'm still not quite sure I was satisfied, but at least I had something now.

I find there's nothing quite as frustrating as a blinking curser. I was supposed to write about something to improve in the school? I hadn't even been going here for very long. Sure, I had my complaints, but really...

"Would you like a refill on your coffee?"

The waitress appeared at my table. The coffee left in my mug had gone cold. I sighed. Maybe another boost of caffeine would help.

"Yeah, sure," I said.

She took my mug away. I glanced to my plate of pancakes. There was about a fifth of the stack left. I lifted my fork and brought another bite to my mouth. I held my fork in my mouth and moved my hand away. I crossed my arms on the table and laid my head on them. Just what did he expect me to say? Just some generic complaint about parking spaces?

"Is something wrong?"

I looked up to find Matt sliding into the booth in front of me. I perked up immediately. I pulled the fork from mouth and grinned.

"Sorry, but you look like you need help. Anything I can do?" Matt said with a small smile on his face.

"Matt! Perfect! You can be my inspiration!" I said.

"Inspiration? You weren't waiting here for me this whole time, were you?" he asked.

"Meh, not really. I didn't think it was going to take so long," I explained.

"What are you doing?" he asked.

"I have to make a blog for this uppity TA in my English class," I explained. "He gave me this whacked out grade, so I'm doing this so everything will be fixed."

Matt's eyebrows furrowed together. "That is a little bit unusual."

"Matt! Good to see you!" My waitress came back with my coffee mug in hand. She was smiling brightly at Matt. I was just a little bit irritated that she hadn't given me my coffee yet. "How's the school year starting off for you?"

"Pretty good. How did that audition work out for you?" Matt asked her.

"Ah, well." She pushed her brown hair behind her ear. "I guess I'll just have to try again some other time."

Matt gave her an understanding smile. "Keep it at it! They'll see how amazing you are eventually."

The waitress looked shyly away. I paid a little bit more attention to her now. She wasn't nearly as old as the other waitresses here. She actually looked around our age, maybe just a little bit older than Matt. She caught my glance. "Oh right, your coffee's right here!" She placed the hot dark drink in front of me.

She backed away slowly. "Let me know if you need anything else!"

"Thanks Lisa!" Matt said.

He turned his attention back to me. "A blog, huh? That seems like something you'd like to do."

I lifted the coffee slowly to my lips and took a small cautionary sip. "Yeah, but it's this first post I have to make. It requires a bit more effort than I anticipated. I mean, there's lots of things I could write about technically, but they're all seem so boring and unawesome. Nothing really stands out, you know what I mean?"

"That does seem like a bit of a problem," Matt agreed with a nod.

I froze. There was something in that statement. "Say that again."

"What? It sounds like a problem. I wish I could help..."

"Matt, you're absolutely brilliant!" I exclaimed. "Seriously! You're the best, most awesomest person ever!" I typed hurriedly on my laptop. I had to get this brilliance down.

"Um, thanks? What exactly did I do?"

"Don't you see? THAT's the problem! And I'm just the person to fix it!"

"I'm still not quite following..."

"That's the problem with the place. Can you even name anything undeniably awesome about here?"

"Uh, well..." Matt muttered as he thought.

"Exactly! This school has a dangerously low degree of awesome. Someone seriously needs to find it!"

"So, you're going to find the 'awesome?'" Matt was beginning to understand.

"If there is any, I'm going to find it. I'm going to find it, and I'm going to broadcast it."

I turned my laptop around so Matt could look at the screen. He squinted behind his glasses. "Anything and Everything Awesome as seen by expert of awesome, the Great and Awesome Jules," he read.

"Yep!" I said proudly. "For the good of the world as well as this school, I'm going to find the awesome things no one knows about yet."

"That's quite a title. You could probably just keep it at 'Anything and Everything Awesome' though," Matt said.

"Fine, fine. Just 'Anything and Everything Awesome' then, but what do you think?" I asked eagerly.

Matt smiled. "Sounds pretty awesome."

"I know, right?! This is going to be amazing!"

I shoved the rest of my pancakes into my mouth. I typed the first post to my awesome blog with enthusiasm. I looked up from my work temporarily. That Lisa waitress was a few tables over. I snapped my fingers and pointed at her. I swallowed before I said, "Yo, Lisa! Another round of pancakes for Matt and me!"

She nodded. "Sure thing! I'll get it right out for you."

"This time it's on me. You deserve it," I said to Matt.

Matt gave me another one of his killer cutie smiles. "How generous of you, Jules."

"At least you know I'm not mooching off you all the time."

Matt laughed at that. He went to his backpack and pulled out a notebook and a giant text book. They went to the table with a heavy thunk.

"Yeesh," I said out loud.

"Tell me about it," Matt said wearily. He opened the book and studied a sentence carefully. He went to the notebook and wrote out his work.

"I guess there's really nothing I can do to help you out, huh?" I said.

"You've already done more than enough," Matt said. He didn't look up from his work. "Pancakes are the best motivator a man can get."

"Better than pretty girls?" I teased.

That's when Lisa came back with the pancakes. She set them down for Matt and me along with a cup of coffee for Matt.

"Enjoy!" she said with a smile and then went away.

"Thanks," Matt said.

He took a long sip of his scalding hot coffee. His face looked like it was turning warm.  
"Well, that helps too," he muttered quietly.

* * *

"Well, I must say the concept is...original. It's quite a different angle than what I was expecting from you. I never really intended for you to actually solve the "problem" if that is actually considered to be one. Your solution should be interesting to say the least. Since you technically upheld your end of the bargain, I shall do the same. If you stay with this level of commitment in your school work, hopefully we won't have to make compromises like this anymore."  
-AKirkland

"Well that was sort of a backwards compliment," Olive said.

"Maybe I should pay that guy another visit. I don't think he learned his lesson," Chessie said, a sly smile on her pink lips.

Both Chessie and Olive were reading over my shoulder. I went to tell them about my awesome blog, and Arthur had already left me a comment on my post.

"It really does look good, chica!" Olive said. "I can't wait to see what you've got planned next."

"And you know we'll help you in whatever way we can," Chessie promised. "Especially if it's seducing your TA," she said with a wink.

"Ew, Chessie! You can count me out of that!" Olive complained.

"What? You didn't find his eyebrows sexy?" Chessie wriggled her perfectly plucked ones up and down suggestively. "You know what they say about men with big eyebrows..."

Olive burst out laughing. "Chessie, seriously stop!"

"Thanks guys. Trust me. If Arthur thought that was interesting, just wait." I smiled and looked back to my friends who were in a laughing heap in the middle of their dorm room floor. "The awesomeness is just getting started."


	11. Chapter 11

This was taking forever. Good thing this was my last day "exploring" the English department. I don't think I could take another double dose of this.

I had gotten so used to Arthur leading the class. Sure, he went on forever, too, but at least he did it to make sure we were understanding everything. Dr. Caliber had finally decided to show up to teach class today. He went off on some sort of tangent ages ago, and there was no hope of him ever coming back to subject.

I looked over to Olive. I was actually pretty impressed that she had managed to stay awake this long. Looked like her brain checked out, though. Her hand mindlessly reached into the ziplock bag and shoved a few more Cheez-its in her mouth.

Oh wait, he was done now. People were starting to get up. I pushed on Olive's shoulder a few times.

"Hey, we should probably go stop lover girl before she throws herself at the wrong English nut."

"Oh yeah." Olive perked up, ready to spring into action.

Chessie wasn't exactly known for holding much restraint when it came to Arthur. Each day, she'd find a new way to flirt under his skin. No one could really tell if she was serious or not. Each time, Arthur would tell her to leave. She never did, and he never made her. You could never tell if he really was serious or not.

"Where is he anyway?" Olive asked.

I looked around. People weren't leaving as quick as they usually did. They were gathered around near the front of the class. Around our charming TA. He was taking this extra attention like a champ, answering the confused questions of the rest of the class. He saw me looking at him. I gave him a thumbs up in mock encouragement. He gave me a glare.

"Looks like grumpy pants is over there," I said. "Dr. Caliber made more work for him. I don't think Chessie going to be able to get close to Artie today."

"I hope that answers everyone's questions," Arthur said to the group around. There were grumbles, but it seemed like the people were vaguely satisfied.

"Oh, Mr. Kirkland, I think I could use a bit more help," a voice peeped up a little louder.

I gawked. How did Chessie make it over there so fast? I didn't even see her come in. "Do you think you could...spare a few minutes and teach me in detail in a place a bit more...private?" Her voice went low and seductive. I could see Arthur's face grow red from here.

"Chessie, for the last time, I don't have time for your ridiculous..."

"Arthur!" Dr. Caliber's voice raised. "You are my teaching assistant! You are obliged to assist this girl whether you like it or not!"

"Sir, she's not even part..." Arthur started calmly.

"Honestly, this is ridiculous. You want to be a teacher, don't you? If you don't try to help her, I'm going to dock your pay," Dr. Caliber said.

"Oh for God's sake," Arthur said. He grabbed Chessie's hand suddenly and stormed out of the room. Chessie's eyes went wide. I don't think she expected the situation to turn this way, but I'm sure she was going to milk it for all it was worth. She gave me a wink as they left.

"I...should probably get to class," Olive said as she finally got up.

I nodded. She and the rest of the students left in a sort of awkward confusion. I wandered to the front.

"Honestly, that boy needs to get a clue. When a pretty girl wants to spend some time alone with you, you're supposed to say yes," my professor said to himself. He kind of reminded me of an old, aloof, Sean Connery. So basically just Sean Connery in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade only he's an English professor and not searching for the Holy Grail.

"I'll keep that in mind, sir," I said.

He looked up at me. It was finally time for him to be confused. He looked down at his work when he understood. "Ah yes, you're the undeclared girl, aren't you. Arthur told me about you."

"That's me. Undeclared." And awesome.

"Let's see," he slipped on his glasses and looked at a paper. "We're supposed to 'introduce the students to what makes your department unique and worthwhile.'" He raised an eyebrow at that. "So, what has Arthur done to show you the 'wonder and uniqueness' of the English department?"

"We graded papers and had some quiet reading time," I said. He usually came in with a collection of poems and books for me to read while he did his work/tried to ward off Chessie. Sometimes while he was really distracted, I'd work on my blog.

"That's sounds about right," he said with a chuckle. "I hope we can still convince you to join the English department."

"I don't know. You've only got one day to do it," I said.

"Then, I think you deserve a bit more excitement. I don't exactly have anything for to you to do down here. Arthur's usually the one to do my work for me. Why don't you go down to the newsroom. They'll have something for you to do there. Have the editor-in-chief send me a note when you've gotten through the 'uniqueness.'"

"Okay..." I said tentatively. I got my bag and placed the strap over my shoulder. This day was turning out a bit different than expected. Who knows. Different holds great potential for awesomeness.

* * *

"I need that column for the fourth page ASAP! I want to see those fingers moving people! We've got deadlines! And where the hell is my frapaccino!"

The eccentric blond stood in the middle of the bustle. The voice carried over the loud babble. This must be the editor-in-chief.

"Calm down, Taylor. Page four is still rearranging their formatting. And here's your coffee." A guy with brown hair weaved his way through the crowd with a Starbucks cup in hand. "And really, you shouldn't use me for errands. I've got my own work to do. Get a freshman to do it"

"Mmm," Taylor said in acknowledgement. "Freshmen never get my order right. Did they remember the double shot of vanilla?"

The brunet sighed. "Yes. And extra foam."

The editor sipped the coffee. "Mmm, good. Tell page four they need to get their shit together." Taylor's eyes looked to me."Who's that, and why are they here?" Taylor asked the brunet. It was hard to be quiet and subtle in a place like this.

The brunet blinked a couple of times at me. "I don't know..."

I rolled my eyes. "My name is Jules. Dr. Caliber sent me to learn about the wonders of the newspaper," I said.

"Jules, huh? Sounds sassy. Lots of pizazz. Good pen name. Maybe she can get page four to get their cute little butt in gear. Tanner, show her around, would ya?"

Before Tanner could object, Taylor went off to a little office to the side to sit behind a mountain of papers. Tanner massaged his temple with his fingers.

"I'm Tanner, the assistant editor in chief. As you can probably guess, that was Taylor, our editor-in-chief. I guess you're part of that exploratory program, huh?" Tanner said.

"Yeah," I looked back to Taylor's office, questions running through my mind.

"I was part of it when I was a freshman. I had no idea what I wanted to do," he said.

"And you chose English?"

"Journalism, yeah. It seemed like the best fit. Plus, Taylor practically dragged me in."

Taylor huh? The editor sure was... dynamic.

"Since this is a college paper, we try to keep it as close to a real paper as possible while keeping relevancy to what's going on in the university. Major school events make the front page then club activities and announcements," Tanner explained.

"And what is this infamous 'page four?'" I asked.

"Oh, that's just pop culture. Trends and fads and social stuff. It's Taylor's favorite page."

"Oh." That explained a lot but yet not enough. "So what's the problem?"

"Just the usual complications. People waiting until the last minute to get their articles done. Freshmen count is low this year, so not all the old senior positions are filled quite yet."

"Well, I'm supposed to do something..." I said.

"Right, well, you could go over to the page four corner and tell them to continue working. I'll get Taylor to sign off on something," Tanner said.

"Thanks, dude," I said with a smile. I guess I'd get off early after all. I started heading to the corner when I saw something I hadn't expected. Oh, this was just too good.

I got right up behind him and leaned on the back of his chair. "Hey Gare-bear, Taylor said to get your cute little butt in gear and get your article done," I whispered.

Garrett flinched and jumped about two inches in the air. "Jesus, Jules! What the hell are you doing here? And stop calling me that."

"Exploring," I said. "What are you doing here? Writing little steamy short stories for the paper, are we?"

"N-no!" He whipped his head around to make sure no one heard that. I doubted that anyway. It took forever before he let me read over any of them. They were really good, but he was really embarrassed by them. That's why I was a bit confused on why he was here. "I...I'm a movie critic."

"Movie critic? I thought you were going to be writer," I said.

"I was...I am! I write movie reviews for the school paper. Is that really so hard to understand? It'll be good experience," he defended.

"Still, I don't understand why..." It finally clicked in my head. I gave Garrett a tired look. "You haven't told Katerina, have you." It wasn't a question; it was a fact.

"Of course she knows," he said. "She went with me to see the movie."

"You didn't tell her you write cheesy love stories," I said. "I thought you'd be spilling your guts to her by now considering how much you go on about each other."

"I just want her to be impressed. A journalist sounds more reliable and professional than an amateur novelist, you know," he said. His eyes went wide. "Wait, what does she say about me?"

"Garrett, who cares what people think. Do what you do best. Stop selling yourself short. And stop asking me to do your double spy dirty work. You're going to make me sick."

"But, Jules, Jules, did she say anything about..."

"Oh, ask her yourself. Like she would tell me anything. All she said was that she had a nice time."

"How did she say the word nice? Did she sigh? Was it a happy sigh or one of those annoyed and irritated..." Garrett went on.

"Oh my God, excuse me while a vomit. I'm sure she thought you were as manly and sensitive as you want her to think," I practically shouted.

Garrett smiled. "She's so great, Jules."

"Yeah yeah. Speaking of manly and sensitive, is the editor-in-chief a boy or a girl?"

Garrett shrugged his shoulders. "I find it safer not to ask. Taylor busts my balls regardless."

Real helpful, Garrett. Real helpful.

"Well, isn't that just fabulous!" Taylor came out of the office with an irritated expression. "Listen up, you guys!" The room went quiet for a moment. "Apparently the regular announcer at the football game won't be able to make it this Saturday. Some genius in the student council thought this should be our problem. They want one of our sports journalists to cover."

"Shouldn't they have just asked someone in sports management?" someone asked.

"That's like what I'm saying! They're like playing in the game or something. Unfortunately, our sports guys have totally got like mono or a speech impediment or whatever. No one wants to sit though that. But we've, like, got to do this. If we do, we might get like extra funding." I was mildly entertained by Taylor's verbal tick. It seemed to come out when Taylor got visibly more stressed. "I know we've got deadlines, but can like anyone fill in? Someone who knows football or something?"

I looked around, but no one did or said anything.

"Anyone? I'll like totally let them have extra space in the paper," Taylor pleaded.

Still nothing. Meh, might as well. I raised my hand. "I'll do it," I said.

Everyone looked at me. "Really?" Taylor said.

"Yeah. I like football." My brother plays it after all. "And I'm supposed to be helping out."

"Jules, baby, you're a lifesaver," Taylor said. "Alright, announcements over! Back to work!"

The bustle slowly came back. Tanner made his way over to us with papers in hand.

"You know, you don't have to do this, Jules. You were only supposed to help out here for one day," Tanner said.

"But I'll get space in the paper, right? I can put in whatever I want. It'll be awesome," I said with a smile.

Tanner laughed. "I wouldn't go that far. I've got your slip for Dr. Caliber. You can just email me what you want, and I'll try to get it into the next issue." He got me the paper I needed and moved on to help someone else.

"Jules, what are you doing?" Garrett asked, looking for an explanation to my sudden extra-curricular commitment.

"Being awesome of course. I didn't exactly see you coming to the rescue, Mr. Knight-in-shining-armor. Anyway. I'm going to go. Have fun with keeping secrets from Katerina. I'm sure that'll work out just fine. It's about time you broke up anyway," I said.

"Alright. Have fun being single and alone!" he retorted.

"Ooh, ouch! That hurt so bad! Almost as bad as being whipped!" I shouted back as I left.

"Ha!" he laughed in my direction.

"Ha!" I laughed defiantly right back.

I slammed the door. There was a stark difference in noise of the newsroom and the quiet hallway. I could hear my feet slap against the floor.

Whatever. Who cares if I was still single. I had better things to do. Much better, awesomer things.

**AN: Btw, Tanner=Lithuania, Taylor=Poland**


	12. Chapter 12

"You wouldn't believe what happened next," Chessie said.

All of us had the rest of the afternoon off, so where did we end up? The gym. Good thing, too. It was pancake happy hour tonight.

"What happened?" Olive asked breathlessly. She was on a treadmill pointed towards us as we were lifting weights. I was squatting with a barbell and Chessie was curling some light weights to "keep her arms toned."

"Well, he ended up dragging me all the way to the library. I apologized, but I don't think he could hear me over all of my laughing. I really didn't expect your teacher to act like that dramatic. Anyway, I bought him coffee to try to make it up. He wouldn't take it though. Says he only drinks tea. I made him drink it anyway, but he was making faces the whole time, big baby."

"Well, that's kind of rude him," I said. I stood on my tiptoes to put the barbell back on its stand. "Want me to give him trouble for you?"

"Au contraire, Jules," Chessie said with a smile. "There's so much you have to learn. Not only was he telling me what sort of stuff he's into, he also showed me where he likes to sit in the library. Where we can meet for our between the shelves rendezvous," she not so subtly suggested. "He's totally into me. Only a matter of time before he's on his knees begging me for a date."

I let out a huff as the weight was relieved. I plopped to the floor. "Whatever. Sounds pretty far-fetched to me." I started stretching out my legs so I wouldn't be cramped and sore later.

"Sometimes you've got to take leaps and bounds in relationships. It helps to imagine the distance isn't so far," Chessie said whimsically. She set down the weights. "Speaking of long ways to go, have you made any boy fall madly in love with you yet?"

"I don't think so," I said.

"Come on, Jules! Are you even trying? Have you even talked to any boys yet?" Chessie said with a little laugh.

"Ha ha, very funny. Even if I did try, I don't think I could make anyone fall in love with me that fast. I know I'm awesome, but it's usually not that sort of reaction," I explained.

"Well, when it happens, you'll know because it happens just like that," Chessie said as she snapped her fingers.

"Hey, are you guys going to go to the football game tomorrow?" I asked casually. I wasn't going to let them on. Hardly anyone knew my little announcer secret. I hadn't even blogged about it yet.

"Of course!" Chessie said. She winked at a passerby who was checking her out as she stretched her arm across her chest. "A bunch of hot, muscular guys crashing into each other in order to score? Count me in."

"I thought you were going for Arthur now," Olive said. She slid to the back and off of the treadmill.

"A girl has to keep her options open," Chessie responded. "Very open." She waved at another guy passing by.

"You going, Olive?" I asked.

"Might as well." She rode to the back of the treadmill. "Where do you chicas want to sit?"

"The most awesome place," I said with a grin. My friends had no idea.

"I'm not quite sure if that qualifies as a real place," Chessie said.

"Oh, it's real," I said.

"No worries. We can just meet up there. It shouldn't be very hard to find each other," Olive said. "I'm hungry. Anyone else?"

I shrugged. "I could go for a little something."

* * *

Fork and knife gripped in hand, I could feel the creepy and uncontrollable grin spreading across my face as I looked down at the plate Janet set in front of me. I had made sure to eat light with Chessie and Olive to prepare for this glorious moment.

"Mmhmm, I know that look, sweetie. You're in love already."

I looked up at that wonderful woman. "Run away with me, Janet. We can make sweet, beautiful pancakes together."

"Mmm," a voice mumbled in protest. I turned my head to face my protester. Matt set down the coffee mug as he swallowed its dark liquid back. "Not so fast. That's my job. I'm the one who's going to run away with her," he insisted.

"Oh you kids, who am I to get in the way of your lover fantasies? I'm a married woman after all," Janet said as she scuttled off. "Just keep it PG. This is a family establishment."

I snapped my fingers. "I almost had her, Matt. I was this close!"

"I saw her first," Matt said calmly. "Besides, you don't know her like I do."

I grumbled. A quick bite of pancakes remedied that loss. I was going to be stuffed after eating so much, but I didn't care. I couldn't let something like this pass. "I love Fridays," I said with reverence. "This is so awesome."

"By the way, how's that blog of yours?" Matt asked.

"My blog? Oh, it's fine. I've got a few followers now. Slowly gaining popularity. I told my friends, and they probably told a few people. Newspaper people probably got to it, too," I said.

"Newspaper?" Matt said.

"Yeah, I'm kind of a big deal. That reminds me, are you going to the football game tomorrow?" I asked.

"I wasn't planning to..." He gave me a look. "What are you up to?"

"My lips are sealed." I stuck another bite of pancake in before I stuck my lips together with leftover maple syrup. "You'll just have to go to the game to find out. Let me tell you it's going to be interesting. Awesome to say the least."

"But seriously, what are you going to do?" Matt's blue eyes were bright. He was practically begging to get in on the action. His eyes were trying to pull the words out of me.

"Well, first, I'm going to absolutely stuff myself with pancakes," I said.

Matt nodded in agreement.

"Then, in my syrup filled stupor I'll blog some more," I continued.

"Of course, and..." Matt urged.

"And you'll just have to see for yourself," I teased. "Or hear about it. It'll be all over, but it's better to experience it all first hand."

"Don't I get anything at all? Not even as your pancake partner?" Matt said.

"Of course not! Surprises are reserved for special people," I said and winked. "And you're very special."

"Ask her out already, Mattie!" Janet called out. We looked to try to find her, but she was across the restaurant helping someone else, unaware of what we were even talking about.

Matt sighed, trying to ignore another one of Janet's countless attempts to string us together. "I guess I'll just have to find you at the game tomorrow."

I smiled. "You better."

* * *

_Hey there, Internet peeps!_

_Good evening or morning or whatever time you decided to read this. Now, it is a largely undisputed fact that Friday is the most awesome day of the week, and therefore worthy of a post on this blog. There's just nothing quite better than after a long and tiring work week being able to kick back and know that whatever you do that evening will probably have no effect on the life that you're supposed to keep "respectable." Whether you grab a couple friends and party until you fall over or if you're just watching Netflix like you do every other night, there is nothing that you can do wrong._

_Now you may think that a place like TGI Friday's would be the restaurant to be on a Friday. No. Just because something has Friday in it's name does not mean they truly appreciate the significance of Friday. How do you eat a Friday to it's potential? Simple. With pancakes. This awesome and magical place is not only gifted with the breakfast of champions and ultimate food of choice, but you also have the golden and fluffy opportunity to stuff your face. For free. Now you might ask, "Oh Jules, this can't be true! Where can I possibly find this mystical place flowing with syrup and coffee?" You don't have to look very far, my Internet friends. It's Chicks. A place filled with awesome people (like yours truly) and an awesome pancake happy hour from 10-12 on Fridays. I can't help myself. It's literally too awesome to pass on._

_So, whether you're stuffing your face like me until you almost regret it (never!) or catching up on your sleep, Friday is the day meant to be awesome. Enjoy it to the fullest! __Stay awesome out there!_

_Jules_

**AN: Oh! We're about to hit the hundredth review on this baby! Woohoo! Just two more to go! I wonder if you want anything special. I could tell the hundredth reviewer a spoiler? Or maybe just a secret? Backstory on a character perhaps? Have anything awesome that should be included on Jules' blog? Anyway, that's pretty much all I can offer. Thank you all so much!**


	13. Chapter 13

It wasn't that long until kickoff, but I still hadn't spotted Chessie or Olive. I swiveled around in the chair in the press box at the top of the stadium. Where were they?

People were settling into their seats. Homecoming was still a few weeks away, so this game probably wouldn't have a lot of spectators. That and considering our football team wasn't that great.

I looked down at the sheet in my hand. Apparently, this was what the announcer usually said before the game. I'd say the script was a bit dry and overdone.

I scanned the metal stands on the home side of the audience once more. I felt a silly grin creep across my face when I saw her.

Chessie was standing near the field as she looked up at the stands. I waved at her, but I really don't think she could see me up in the press box. She looked confused. She couldn't find the elusive awesome spot I had bragged about. She saw something and smiled. She waved, but it didn't quite look like she was looking at me. She climbed up the stairs and went out of my view to the side.

I pushed out from the table and broadcasting equipment. I went to the door to try to find her back but stopped. The clock over the entryway quickly prompted me to change my mind. It was game time. I guess she'd find out where I was soon enough.

"Goooooooood afternoon, sports fans! Are you ready for some footbaaaaaaaaaaaaallllllllllll?!" I pressed down the button and said into the mic. My voice blasted through the speakers out to the audience. If they weren't paying attention then, they certainly were now. Everybody that I could see was turned toward the press box.

"It's an awesome day for a game, so let's get down to business, shall we? Friendly reminder that there is no tolerance for foul or offensive language or behavior at the game no matter how terrible the play or how attractive the players, cheerleaders, band members, or announcer. Visiting all the way from Adams University, we've got the Stallions."

They came up out of the locker rooms and pranced across the field. There were a few polite claps. Their cheerleaders held up signs and urged the visitor side of the field to get up on their feet.

"And now, for your home team, the ones you came to see, the ones longing for the win, the ones who will fight till the end, your Wilson University Warriors!"

There was more cheering from our side of the field. "Look at them folks! Aren't they awesome?! They're sure to play an awesome game today. Get on your feet and cheer! Woooooo!"

My last exclamation sent chills down my spine. Like I remembered something horrible and cheesy. Flashes of orientation went through my mind. Why did I just make a reference to that?

The cheering died down, and I could make my next announcement. "Everyone, please stand up and turn to the flag as the Wilson University Marching Band plays the national anthem."

I got a little break to think while the band played. This was harder than I thought. How exactly was I supposed to make this more interesting? Being a PA was pretty difficult.

I watched the results for the toss up and announced that the Warriors would start off in offense.

It didn't take long for the door to burst open. "So you were here after all!"

I grinned as Olive and Chessie came into the room. Olive was the source of the sudden happy outburst.

"Oh hey Olive! You guys finally found me!" I said, delighted from my friends' reactions to my little surprise.

"How'd they let you up here anyway?" Chessie said as she looked over all of the equipment.

"The guys down in newspaper needed a little help, so I struck a little deal," I said smugly.

"Ha! A deal? That doesn't sound suspicious at all..." Chessie implicated.

I shrugged my shoulders. "I guess you'll just have to wait and see."

"Wait and see?" Olive asked. "Just how many surprises do you have up your sleeves, Jules?"

"Well, I've..." I started.

"Wh-what d-do you t-two think you're d-doing up here?" Another guest burst into the room. He was frowning as he clutched his notepad in his hands.

"Ah, Tommy, they're cool. These girls are with me," I explained.

Tommy worked for the newspaper as a sports writer. He was really gung ho about all of this but couldn't do the announcement because of his prominent and distracting stuttering. He showed me the ropes of what I was supposed to do and had apparently staked out in front of the press box door to make sure I did everything correctly. He didn't stay inside in case he was too much of a distraction.

"N-no unauthorized p-personnel are allowed in the p-press b-box. You're su-supposed to be watching the game. They have to g-go," Tommy insisted.

"Oh really, then why don't you just go and authorize us, hmm? We're not being too much of a distraction, are we?" Chessie's sultry voice teased. She sat down in one of the rolling chairs and crossed her long legs. Her heel clad foot bounced up and down playfully.

"Do we really have to go?" Olive asked.

Tommy was distracted for a moment by Chessie's display, but then turned to Olive. "Y-yeah. Rules are r-r-rules."

"No," Chessie said defiantly. "We haven't done anything wrong. I'm not moving from this chair."

That prompted Olive to get behind the chair and push her roommate and the chair out the door.

"No! Vive la resistance!" Chessie shouted.

"I guess we'll see you later, Jules. We'll be listening for you!" Olive said as she parted through the door Tommy held open.

"Alright! Bye!" I tried to squeeze in as the door closed.

Well that was a bummer. I had really counted on them to be up here and keep me company. I swiveled a bit more in my chair. There wasn't anything to announce at the moment. We had already lost possession of the ball, so we were nowhere close to a first down let alone a touchdown. I guess I'd just have to wait for a break.

* * *

"Alright as halftime comes to an end, be sure to pick up some snacks from the concession stand. There's two for one pretzel deal going on that would be a shame to pass up. Add a medium coke and some candy, and it's perfect. A real Warrior's choice."

Oh God, I was slipping into overly team spirited again. Our team hadn't won a single point, and it didn't look like they would this half either.

My ears perked up as I heard the door open and a set of wheels slid across the floor.

"Ah, so you do exist outside Chicks. I was beginning you were a dream or something."

I whipped around in my chair to find Matt smiling at me. Nothing could describe the overwhelming happiness I felt when I saw him.

"Matt! You actually came! How'd you get in here? I would have thought my warden would have gotten you. He kicked my friends out earlier. Where'd you get the chair?" I asked. I was pretty sure Chessie had taken it when she was pushed out of the room.

"Who? Tommy? He's no biggie. The chair was right outside the door. You freshmen don't know how to work the system yet. It's all about who you know and what kind of candy you bribe them with. I promised Tommy I'd be quiet. Practically invisible," Matt grinned.

"Huh, well do you have a bribe for me as well?" I asked. "It'd only be fair. You wouldn't want me to feel left out, would you?"

"It's not pancakes, but..." Matt took out a brown paper bag from his hoodie pocket. The bag crinkled as he pulled out a pretzel. "I heard you had been wanting one of these."

"Ooh gimme!" I held my hand out, and he placed the warm salty treaty in my clasping hand.

"Mmm, why can't people be as awesome as you?" I asked as I bit down. I had been craving this so bad.

"Well, if everyone were like me, I wouldn't be nearly as special," Matt said.

I tilted my head and allowed it. "So, did you just get here or something?"

"No, I've been here pretty much the entire time."

"Then, why didn't you come up sooner? I could have introduced you to my friends," I said. "They're pretty awesome, too. I think you'd like them."

"Well," Matt said sheepishly. "I sort of spent half of the game debating whether or not I should. I didn't know whether you'd want me to come up."

I rolled my eyes. "Of course I'd want you to come up! It was getting rather lonely in here. It's a shame we only really see each other at Chicks. I really love just hanging out with you."

I nearly choked on my pretzel as I saw a play happening on the field. My attention turned to the microphone. The people in the stands were on their feet.

"I can't believe it guys! It finally happened! White caught the interception and is heading for the end zone! He's going...going...TOUCHDOWN WARRIORS! Woohoo!"

I turned back to Matt, excitement still all over my face. "Did you see that?! DID YOU SEE THAT?! Wasn't that awesome?!" I exclaimed.

Matt blinked a bit as if he was a bit in shock. I mean, it wasn't the most drastic of plays. We were still a long ways from winning the game. Still, it was hard not to get wrapped up in the sport.

"Yeah...amazing..." he said.

I patted at the spot on at the table right next to me. "Park it here, mister. I think you'll prove to be my good luck charm for the game."

* * *

Things were definitely looking up with Matt around. Not only was he good company, the team was also making a comeback. We were getting first down after first down, which didn't exactly leave a whole lot of time to talk to Matt without getting interrupted.

There were only a few seconds left in the game. Our team was all lined up for a two point conversion to tie the game. I was so nervous I didn't know what to do with myself.

The play started. The quarter back leaped over the people towards the goal line. The buzzer sounded, and the player dropped. The football barely got on the line.

"Yes!" I cheered and jumped up from my seat. We got two extra points! We would be going into overtime! We'd have the same score as... The board didn't change. We were still down by two. I looked to the field and the referee was waving his arms around. It didn't count. The game was over. There were angry people yelling, but none of them were as angry as me.

"Ref! Ref!" I shouted until he looked up at the press box. "Are you freaking blind? That ball was in! I could see it from all the way up here! Call for overtime already!"

He started calling out symbols as I talked. None of them were for overtime.

"Yeah yeah, keep your stupid penalties to yourself. They're useless if the game is over, so is the game over or not? Make up your mind, jackass!" I yelled into the microphone.

Matt grabbed my hand then and yanked me from the microphone. "I think it's time for us to go. Candy can only do so much," Matt said.

Tommy burst in then, clearly enraged. "Are y-you insane?! What-t-t the hell do you think y-you're d-doing? You c-can't s-say those s-sorts of things on the air!"

Matt pushed past him on our way out. My feet were barely keeping up as we flew down the dozens of stairs. We were really running once our feet hit the pavement. We were out of the stadium before anyone else. We ran until it was completely out of sight.

Our feet slowed as our breathing became more haggard, mostly because of my laughing. I plopped down on an empty bench as I laughed and tried to catch my breath.

"That...that was great!" I breathed. "I need to do that more often."

Matt shook his head. "You can't...they'll probably ban you from all the games now."

"Phooey...Well, I guess we'll just have to find something else to do," I said.

We looked at each other as we caught our breaths. Eventually they slowed and became more even.

Something caught my eye that seemed rather familiar. We both turned our heads to look behind us to find that we were right in front of Chicks.

"Hey, you want to get some pancakes?" I asked with a grin.

Matt grinned right back. "Of course."

* * *

_Word to the wise to all you football fans out there. Referees don't seem to like it when you call them a jackass. In my experience, they take it a bit too seriously even if it is the truth :P That ball was totally in. I guess I won't be a sports announcer again anytime soon._

_Jules_


	14. Chapter 14

I looked up from my laptop as I heard paper slap against the table. I turned my head to give a sarcastically pleasant look at my darling roommate. She had really been getting on my nerves lately, but this was getting to be the last straw.

"Yes?" I asked.

"What is this?" she asked.

I looked down at the newspaper she had placed on the table. Specifically at the giant headline I had worked so hard for:

"Looking for that extra dose of awesome in your life? Go to Anything and Everything Awesome to fulfill your awesome needs. Trust me, the content is so awesome, it'll bring awesome tears to your eyes. Be awesome and check it out."

"I believe that is the school newspaper," I said.

"Is this some kind of joke to you?"

"I thought it was more of a statement of the obvious," I said, getting more annoyed by the second. Why was she even here? "I can't really help if my wit and general awesome humor slips into normal conversation."

"I can tolerate your computer screen being lit up so late at night to a point, but I can't support these delusions of grandeur."

"Delusions?" Just who did she think I was?

"Despite what you may believe, you aren't the center of the world. Not everything you think or do is considered 'awesome.'"

"Don't you have to go practice piano or something?" I said, returning back to my laptop screen.

Katerina scoffed. "Fine. I'll go. But trust me, if you keep up like this you'll be due for a harsh dose of reality."

I snapped back up at that, but she was already out the door. I glared at her as she walked away.

"Rude," I said out loud. "She didn't even say hello."

"I don't think she quite realized I was here..." Matt said, looking back at the direction Katerina walked away. "That was your roommate?"

"Lovely bottle of sunshine, isn't she?" I said.

"I don't think she was that bad..." he trailed on.

I gave him a look.

"Maybe you just need to communicate more. Get to understand each other," he tried to qualify.

"Trust me, any more 'communication' between us is not going to be pretty," I said. "And she's the one who needs to understand she can't make me do or not do anything. She's not the boss of me," I said stubbornly.

I finished typing out the rest of the line on my laptop based on the instructions. "Okay, I think I've got it this time."

"Let me see," Matt said with polite eagerness.

I turned my laptop around so he could see. I could see my new and improved blog reflecting and dancing across his glasses.

"Whoa, this is pretty cool!" A smile spread across his face.

"I know right!" I grinned. "These guys in the tech department showed me a few tricks. Took me forever to figure it out, though."

"Looks like you gained a few more followers," he said.

"Yesssss!" I hissed happily. I picked up my laptop and turned it back around.

* * *

"Wow, this actually is pretty awesome! I can't wait to see more!"

"You were the announcer at last Saturday's football game, right? I was actually entertained for once. Keep it up!"

* * *

Matt was staring at me when I looked up from my laptop.

"What?" I asked. "Do I have syrup on my face?" I touched my cheek, nothing felt sticky.

"No, it's just that you look so happy," he said.

"Maybe I am," I said with a sly little smile. I went back to my blog. "Those tech guys really did a wonder for my blog. I'll have to steal a few more tips from them before I leave the department."

"You don't think you'll choose to stay with them either?" Matt asked.

"I might take a class or two, but I don't know. I just can't see myself buried in computer code all the time," I said. "I mean, they're nice guys and all. I just think I'm meant for something different."

"Hmm," Matt said as he sipped slowly on his coffee.

"What? What are you thinking about?" I asked.

"I'm just trying to predict what department you'll match up with," he explained.

"Any luck?"

"Nope." He finally put his mug down. "Not a clue."

"Hmm, too bad," I said. "The world may never know."

* * *

The thing you could be sure about with Katerina is that she took god awful long showers. Who knows what she did in there. I walked into the community bathroom and it was positively filled with steam.

I could hear her softly singing in an opera voice. I think it was Italian? Either way, she wouldn't be able to hear me as long as I stayed quiet. She thought I was due for a harsh dose of reality? Ha!

I carefully pushed aside the shower curtain. I was relieved you still couldn't the metal rings screech as they slid against the pole. Her clothes, bathrobe and towel were carefully folded on the bench outside of the stream of water. I quickly snatched them up and put the curtain back in place.

I ran all the way back to my room, clutching the various clothes to my chest. Pranks always gave me such a thrill. I threw them under my sheets and followed after. I tried to look as normal as possible and even got my laptop out and continued to blog.

* * *

"Everybody liking the new theme? Some of the tech guys helped me out. The studly and studious tech guys. They've got these giant hard drives and can get their memory sticks in to their USB ports THE FIRST TIME! If that isn't awesome, I don't know what-"

* * *

I heard a scream. it was about time. I tried to disguise my smile and returned to my blog.

"JULIA. BIELSCHMIDT!" Katerina screamed.

The door to our room flew open. Katerina had taken down the shower curtain down and wrapped it around her body. I wondered how she would come out. She didn't seem like the streaking kind. I hadn't thought of the shower curtain. I could hear girls laughing from the hallway.

"'Sup," I said casually.

"Where. Are. My. Clothes?" she annunciated every word.

"I don't know what you're talking about. Nice wrap by the way. Did you get from Home Depot in the bathroom section?" I said.

Her wet hand whipped out and and shut my laptop. I hadn't saved my blog post.

"What the hell!" I shouted. "You bitch!"

"Oh, I'm the bitch?!" she shouted right back. "Did you think that stunt back there was funny? Do you think embarrassing me in front of my peers was funny? Do you think stealing my property is funny?"

"It. Was. A. Prank! You want your stupid clothes back? Here!" I reached under the blankets and threw her clothes and towel in her face. "Have them back!"

"I can't believe I got stuck with someone as rude and inconsiderate as you!" she fumed. She modestly tried to hide herself and she slipped into her bathrobe.

"I'm the inconsiderate one?! I'M THE INCONSIDERATE ONE?!" My voice reached up louder and louder. I jumped out of my bed. "I'M GOING TO KICK YOUR ASS, YOU FUCKING HYPOCRITE!"

The door to our dorm room opened up with a bang.

"Do you know what time it is?! It's precisely 10:01. That means it's quiet time, so kindly SHUT THE HELL UP!"

Our Resident Assistant burst into our room in her pink pajamas. We didn't usually see much of her. She told the girls in our hall right from the beginning that she didn't really care about any of us. She was only really here for the money and free housing. As long as we obeyed the rules, she promised she would be as little involved as possible. Looks like that promise was broken.

"Sara, Julia..." Katerina started.

"Uh uh, nope." Sara shook her head, her short blonde hair swished from side to side. Her bangs fell neatly into place. Her arms crossed her chest. "I don't want to be dragged into your tweenage drama love-hate fest. You're supposed to be adults. Deal with it. Only deal with it at a decibel appropriate for night time hours. Some of us actually have to study and sleep. If I get disturbed one more time, I swear I'll fine you all!"

After she made her exit, there was a brief silence of us just glaring at each other.

"I hate you," Katerina whispered.

"Good because the feeling is mutual," I whispered viciously. I went back to my bed and put my laptop in my case.

"Where do you think you're going!" she whispered as loud as she could.

"Away from you," I whispered back. I dramatically grabbed my pillow and shut the door behind me.

I quickly went next door and insistently and quietly knocked.

Chessie opened the door.

"Hey, can I stay with you guys? I'll sleep on the floor. I just need to get away from _her_," I said.

"Of course, honey," Chessie said. "Anything you need."

"Yeah, we heard the thing. Can we do anything to help?" Olive was up on her bed. She was studying with her papers spread around her.

I laid down on their floor, face smushed into my pillow.

"No," was my muffled reply.

I reached blindly for my laptop. I got it out and opened it back up to my blog. My previous post was gone. I'd have to start from scratch.

* * *

"You know those people you know you can just never get along with? It always seems like they are constantly in your face to mess with you and ruin every possible good moment. I know I've had enough. I'm so mad I can barely stand it. (Btw, the tech guys are awesome. They helped me make this blog even more awesome.)"


End file.
